ALL IN
by luvhouse5
Summary: Sequel to "THE MISTAKE." Cuddy is pregnant with House’s baby, Wilson is marrying Debbie from accounting, Chase, still in chronic pain, moves in with his girlfriend, and an unexpected visitor from House's past returns. Romance, Angst, Humor, SEX.
1. Chapter 1

**HI EVERYONE!**

**AS PROMISED, HERE IS MY SEQUEL TO "THE MISTAKE."**

**AND EVEN IF YOU HAVEN'T READ "THE MISTAKE," THIS FIRST CHAPTER MAKES IT EASY TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IS GOING ON.**

**AS FAR AS SHIPS, THERE WILL BE PLENTY OF HUDDY, CHASE/ OC, AND WILSON/ OC.**

**IN ADDITION, THERE WILL ALSO BE HOUSE/CHASE INTERACTION, HOUSE/ WILSON INTERACTION, CHASE/ CUDDY INTERACTION, WILSON/ CUDDY INTERACTION, WILSON/ CHASE INTERACTION, SOME APPEARANCES BY OLD AND NEW TEAM MEMBERS...**

**BASICALLY EVERYONE.**

**YOU GET THE IDEA. ;)**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 1: Please read and comment.**

_"So what does the stomach pain tell us?" House asked as he stood in front of his whiteboard in his conference room._

_Foreman flipped through the chart of their latest patient in frustration from his position at the conference table._

_"That it could be gastroenteritis, gall bladder disease, colon cancer, diverticulitis, kidney stones, an intestinal obstruction or a thousand other things," he said with an annoyed tone in his voice._

_"Well let's try to narrow it down from a thousand before lunch, shall we?" House asked condescendingly._

_"Why? Got a hot date or something?" Thirteen asked with an arched eyebrow._

_Just then, the phone on House's desk started ringing. House began to limp towards the desk to answer it._

_"With Wilson. He's wearing my favorite pair of tighty- whities today," House replied to her._

_"I always pegged Wilson as a boxers guy," Thirteen whispered to Foreman, leaning over towards him._

_Foreman laughed slightly as House picked up the phone._

_"Hello," House said._

_"Got a case," Chase said promptly on the other end of the phone._

_"Already got a case," House replied curtly._

_"Trust me. You'll be interested. Thirty- eight year old female presents with dizziness, temporary syncope, low BP and elevated hCG levels," Chase stated._

_"You needed me to confirm a diagnosis of pregnancy?" House asked, furrowing his brow in confusion._

_"Oh, I knew the diagnosis," Chase assured him._

_House grimaced. "Then why are you wasting my time—" he began._

_"I just thought _YOU'D_ like to know the diagnosis…" Chase said in a leading tone._

_At first, House shook his head, having absolutely no idea what Chase was talking about._

_But as he was about to yell at Chase for annoying him, he suddenly stopped himself, a look of epiphany enveloping his features._

_"…LISA?" House managed to ask through the lump in his throat._

_"She's in Dr. Sobol's office waiting for you. She bumped her head a bit when she fainted in the NICU. She's fine. Just a bit of a headache…" Chase told him._

_Chase then felt Cuddy lightly thread her fingers through his._

_He looked down at her as she lay on the examining table in Dr. Sobol's OB/ Gyn office._

_She was holding an ice pack on her head where she had fallen._

_She had a tired, yet incredibly happy smile on her face._

_"… And pregnant," Chase added, returning Cuddy's smile with an affectionate one of his own._ 

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At around seven thirty that evening, Chase limped down the hallway with his cane towards Cuddy's hospital room. He had already changed out of the set of scrubs he had worn that day in the NICU and back into his jeans, t- shirt and sneakers.

He glanced at his watch and smiled when he saw the time.

"_SOPHIE'S PROBABLY BOARDING HER FLIGHT RIGHT NOW_," Chase thought happily to himself.

Knowing that his girlfriend's flight was scheduled to take off at eight pm, he only had a half- hour before he had to leave for Princeton Airport if he wanted to meet her on time.

He couldn't wait to bring her to their new home.

"_THEIR HOME_," Chase repeated in his head.

He had met Sophie Wilson at a restaurant while he was on a conference with Cuddy in Boston last October. Sophie had been waiting tables and tending bar there for extra cash, and was a third year medical student at Boston University at the time.

He shook his head and laughed sheepishly as he remembered the events of that tumultuous week.

For in that same week that he had met Sophie, later discovering that she was James Wilson's younger sister, he had also cheated on Cameron with Cuddy while drunk in the hotel room they had been forced to share because House had canceled Cuddy's room reservation.

He and Sophie had quickly fallen for each other.

And then he had hurt his ankle and had become addicted to Vicodin.

And for a while, things were very good between them, despite his pain and addiction.

And then they weren't.

Sometimes he still couldn't believe that after everything that he and Sophie had been through in the last several months that she still was willing to transfer to Princeton Plainsboro medical school and move in with him.

But he quickly pushed those thoughts aside as he dug his bottle of Ultram out of his pocket, his fingers brushing lightly against the copy of their new house key that he had made for Sophie.

After swallowing his prescribed painkiller dry, he impulsively stuck his hand in his other pocket, making sure that the housewarming present he had bought for Sophie was still there.

He then pushed the door open to Cuddy's room, finding her sitting up slightly on the bed, her legs stretched out in front of her, her ankles crossed.

"How you feeling, boss?" Chase asked with a smile.

"Still have a bit of a headache," she replied, returning his smile.

Chase grabbed a nearby ophthalmoscope and moved closer to her to examine her right eye.

"Your eyes are beautiful," Chase said as he critically looked through the ophthalmoscope.

"You don't have to flatter me. I already slept with you, remember?" Cuddy quipped.

"Just getting a jump on my performance review…" Chase replied dryly, examining her other eye.

"…And it seems you have no memory loss," he added cheekily.

Cuddy grinned in response. It was partly Chase's charm that had wooed her several months ago at that conference.

And his beautiful face, hot body and the hard alcohol she had drank that night didn't hurt either.

"You can take Tylenol for the pain," Chase told her, placing the instrument on a nearby tray.

"I'm not taking anything," Cuddy declared firmly.

Chase shot her a look of disdain. "You know that Tylenol is safe during pregnancy. You're just being stubborn."

"Chase, I've waited a long time to get pregnant. I'm doing anything to put the baby at risk," she stated.

"Fine. Suit yourself," Chase replied with a shrug as he began to write in her chart.

"Is _MOMMY_ good to go?" a familiar voice asked from the doorway.

Chase turned around to see House standing behind him, holding onto the door handle and twirling his cane in his other hand. His backpack was slung over his shoulder.

"Almost," Chase replied, turning back to Cuddy.

"…_DADDY_," Chase added with a smirk as he winked at Cuddy.

House tilted his head curiously.

"That was probably the first time anyone has ever called me '_daddy_' in a non- sexual setting," he commented.

"Thanks for sharing," Chase muttered.

House then crossed the room towards Cuddy's bed, limping past Chase as he did so. He leaned over slightly as he gazed into Cuddy's soft blue- grey eyes.

"How's your head?" House asked her in a gruff, yet somewhat tender voice.

"Still hurts, but I'm ok," she replied.

House glanced down at her abdomen, wishing that Chase would just leave the room so he could spend a few minutes with the mother of his child alone.

As if sensing House's feelings towards him, Chase signed off on Cuddy chart and closed the file.

"Everything looks good here. You're free to go. Don't forget to make your first prenatal appointment with Sobol," Chase told her.

"…Maybe you should stay overnight for observation," House suggested after a pause with a furrowed brow.

"Greg, I'm fine," Cuddy said dismissively.

"I'll admit you for one night. What's the big deal?" House asked her.

"The big deal is that you're trying to get out of Chase and Sophie's painting party tomorrow," Cuddy replied knowingly, folding her arms across her chest.

"And I'm _NOT_ going to let you use our embryo as an excuse to renege on every social engagement that we're invited to," she added with a righteous tone.

"You know, paint fumes could be toxic to an unborn baby," House told her, hoping that the usual fears of a new mother would kick in.

"Then I'll sit on Chase and Sophie's new deck and put my feet up on a chair with an iced drink in my hand while _YOU_ help them paint," she retorted, a broad grin forming on her lips.

Chase chuckled to himself, causing House to glare at him sharply.

"Shouldn't you be heading to the airport so you can start shacking up with Wilson's sister already?" House asked him in annoyance.

"Congratulations," Chase told Cuddy with an eyeroll at House's comment.

"Thank you," she replied in earnest.

After Chase had left the room, House sat down on the bed next to her, gently pushing her legs over a bit.

He then opened his backpack and produced a paperback copy of "What To Expect When You're Expecting."

Cuddy smiled warmly at House's thoughtfulness as he handed her the book.

"I had a coupon from the last time when I bought the _Kamasutra_," House snarked.

"I love a man with a commitment to frugality," Cuddy replied.

"And ancient porn from the Eastern Hemisphere, apparently," House said, the corners of his lips turning upwards.

Cuddy chuckled as she opened the book and began to flip through its contents.  "So I take it that you're gonna read that whole thing in one night?" House asked, jutting his chin at the book.

"I'm not _THAT_ much of an overachiever," Cuddy replied.

House gazed at her contemplatively, knowing there was something else behind that statement.

Feeling his eyes on her, Cuddy pursed her lips together and closed the book, placing it on her lap.

"…The book covers the entire pregnancy… I'm only at three weeks…" she explained hesitantly, trailing off.

"You want to take this one step at a time," House finished for her.

Cuddy nodded, exhaling in relief that she didn't have to explain to him how nervous she was about finally being pregnant.

And how even more nervous she was that she'd hopefully be able to carry the baby to full term.

House shrugged. "Works for me," he said simply.

His eyes then drifted back down to her flat abdomen, thinking to himself that he couldn't wait for her to start showing.

"…You wanna touch my stomach, don't you?" she asked in a soft, throaty voice.

House nodded in response.

Cuddy took his hand in hers and placed it on her belly. House splayed out his fingers, the corners of his lips turning up once again.

Cuddy melted at the sight of House's moment of emotion.

"Keep in mind, this is just a precursor to feeling you up later," he assured her.

"Yeah, that's what I figured," she replied.

His hand still on her belly, he looked up at her once more, his bright cerulean eyes sparkling.

"Told you my boys could swim," he said.

"I never doubted them," she assured him with a smile. 

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Around ten minutes later, House and Cuddy were walking together towards House's office to retrieve his leather jacket when Cuddy felt the urge to pee.

"I just need to use the bathroom for a minute," Cuddy told him, already headed towards the women's room in the hallway.

"Frequent urination already? Told you that you're an overachiever," House stated.

"I'll meet you in your office when I'm done," she called back to him over her shoulder.

House pushed the glass door to his private office open and headed to his desk. His leather jacket was draped over the back of his chair.

As he limped over to the desk, he noticed a note scrawled in blue ink on the top of his desk.

An odd feeling that he couldn't identify spread throughout his chest as he read the note.

**"HOUSE—**

**DON'T KNOW IF YOU REMEMBER ME. I WAS IN THE SOUTH POLE WHEN YOU DIAGNOSED ME WITH A BROKEN TOE VIA WEBCAM.**

**YOU SAVED MY LIFE.**

**WOULD LOVE TO FINALLY THANK YOU IN PERSON AND CATCH UP.**

**MY OFFICE IS IN THE LUCAS WING.**

**-CATE,"**

After staring at the note for a few moments, House forced the odd feeling down, crumpled up the paper and stuffed it carelessly into the pocket of his jeans. 

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At around 8:45 that evening, Chase was anxiously waiting at Baggage Claim in Princeton Airport, craning his neck as he searched through throngs of people for Sophie, shifting his weight back and forth as he did so.

He glanced one more time at the list of arrivals that was displayed on the board behind him, nodding his head once when he saw that Sophie's flight had landed a few moments ago.

He turned back towards the crowd that was walking towards the conveyor belt, nervously playing with the copy of Sophie's key between his fingers.

And then he saw her.

And his heart felt as if it was about to burst out of his chest.

She had swept her long, dark wavy hair up off her neck. She was wearing a tight black v- neck t- shirt, hip hugging army green Capri- style pants, black Converse All- Star sneakers and her rectangular framed glasses. Her backpack purse was slung over her shoulder.

Upon spotting him through the dense crowd, Sophie stopped in her tracks, her breath catching in her throat.

For a moment, she just stood there, staring at him.

She could swear that the entire airport could hear her heart hammering.

With a soft smile, Chase limped over to where she was standing with the help of his rosewood cane.

Having finally reached her, his beautiful aquamarine eyes sparkled as they traced her entire face, the light scent of white lily and vanilla engulfing his senses.

"You changed soaps," Chase said softly, gazing into her deep brown eyes.

Her insides fluttered as she reached up to caress his smooth cheek.

"You shaved," she said tenderly, her fingers skating over his baby soft skin.

Chase turned his face towards her palm and kissed her there.

"I thought it looked cleaner… you know, for the babies in the NICU," he explained.

"And for the nurses," she teased, biting her lower lip.

Chase grinned. "Do you hate it?" he asked her.

"No," she said, shaking her head a bit, deeply stirred by his gaze.

Chase then reached into his pocket, producing the copy of the key to their new home that he had made for her. He had attached the key to a sterling silver Tiffany keychain that was in the shape of a flower.

"You ready to go home?" he asked her as he handed her the keychain.

Sophie smiled at the key warmly as she took it from his hand. She then took her glasses off her face, wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer to her.

Chase almost lost his balance as her lips engulfed his in an impetuous kiss. Their lips parted in unison as their tongues delicately met. He moaned into her mouth, embracing her around her waist.

"…Yes," she murmured against his lips. 

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By the time all of Sophie's luggage came off the conveyor belt and had loaded it into Chase's car, they had arrived at their new townhouse in Princeton after ten pm.

Having already moved in a few weeks ago, Chase's stuff was all put away in their appropriate places around the house.

Most importantly, he had set up his Xbox in one of the three bedrooms that they had decided to use as a media room.

Chase had bought a bottle of Moet champagne to celebrate their first night together in the new house. They were sitting in the living room on a cream colored leather couch, enjoying the champagne, staring at Sophie's many suitcases and boxes that she had either checked through on the flight and had shipped a few weeks ago.

"I didn't know where you wanted any of your stuff, so I just left it," Chase told her, taking a sip from his glass.

"I can't believe how much stuff I actually _own_," Sophie said, staring at all of her belongings in slight awe and disbelief.

"We'll we've got that big cedar closet in the basement. Might as well start filling it up," Chase commented.

Sophie nodded, took another sip of her champagne and set down the glass on the natural wood coffee table that Chase had purchased from Ikea.

As she began to push herself off the couch, Chase grabbed her wrist.

"Wait wait wait. I didn't mean _NOW_," Chase said pulling her back down to the couch with a smirk on his face.

Sophie arched her eyebrow. "You've got other ideas for how we should spend our first night together?"

"A _LOT_ of other ideas," he said eagerly, lowering her down onto the couch.

He kissed her passionately, warming her soft, supple breast with his hand over her t- shirt as he pressed his body against hers.

Sophie wound her legs around his back, taking care not to brush his left ankle in the process.

"Let's unpack tomorrow," he murmured as his full lips made their way down her neck.

"Works for me," she breathed.

TBC…


	2. Chapter 2

**HI EVERYONE!**

**I'M SO GLAD THAT YOU ARE ALL ENJOYING THE SEQUEL SO FAR!!**

**MY PLAN IS TO POST A NEW CHAPTER EVERY OTHER DAY.**

**THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS!!! I RESPONDED TO ALL OF THEM INDIVIDUALLY.**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

******************************************************************* **

**CHAPTER 2: Please read and comment.**

Chase was in pain.

And the pain couldn't have come at a worse time.

"Oh _GOD_ Robbie…" Sophie whimpered in pleasure underneath him, arching her back with every motion of Chase's hips thrusting against her, her legs securely wrapped around his body, drawing him in.

Chase, breathing hard by now, looked down at Sophie. Her eyes had fluttered closed and her lovely face was flushed as he pushed into her deeply over and over again.

He tried the best he could to block out the insistent throbbing in his left ankle by focusing on the delicious sensation of Sophie's luscious breasts pressed hard against his bare chest, her hips rising up to meet his, and the way she was gripping onto his back.

He could feel her getting closer to the edge, gasping in shallow, desperate breaths.

Chase buried his face in her neck, sweat glistening on his back and shoulders, cursing himself that he had neglected to take his fourth Ultram of the day on schedule.

"Oh god baby… _OHHH_!" Sophie suddenly cried out, her orgasm overtaking her entire body.

Chase groaned loudly into her neck at his powerful release, the pleasure momentarily blocking out the pain, thrilled for the first time in his life that he didn't have the ability to last long. 

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A few moments later, Sophie was lying on her back, the sheet draped over her body, her arms raised above her head, her long, wavy hair splayed out on the pillow.

"Oh… I _LOVVVVE_ our new bed," she murmured lazily, an extremely satisfied smile on her face.

Chase was lying next to her, flat on his back, trying to catch his breath and deal with his throbbing ankle at the same time.

"…Mmm hmm," Chase breathed, his eyes closed.

"And our new couch," Sophie added with a grin.

This time, Chase merely nodded, exhaling hard.

He then reached over to the night- stand on his side of the bed for his bottle of Ultram.

Sophie rolled over onto her side and propped herself up on her elbow, merely glancing at him at first.

But then realization dawned on her when she saw how quickly swallowed the pill dry, almost in desperation, leaning back against the headboard afterwards and closing his eyes once more.

"You were in pain the _ENTIRE TIME_?" she demanded.

"…Not the entire time," Chase mumbled.

"Why didn't you tell me? We could have stopped!" she exclaimed.

"No we couldn't," he asserted, flopping back down on the bed, completely spent.

A tiny chuckle escaped Sophie's lips. She grabbed Chase's t- shirt from the foot of the bed and slipped it on over her head. She then elevated his left leg on a spare pillow for him in an attempt to decrease some of the pain.

"You want some ice to numb it a little? That might help," she suggested.

Chase shook his head dismissively. "It never helps," he told her flatly.

By this point, Sophie knew better than to argue with him.

Instead, she nodded and held his hand tightly, not saying anything as Chase waited for the pain to subside.

He had a forlorn expression, angling his jaw as he glared down at his ankle in disgust.

"...It always gets in the way, doesn't it?" he muttered.

"No it doesn't," she said gently, rubbing his hand with her thumb.

"It's my fault. I was so excited that you were finally here that I forgot to take my fourth dose," Chase berated himself.

A tiny smile formed on Sophie's lips. "I'm flattered," she said.

She then got up out of the bed and grabbed her comb from their dresser while Chase watched her curiously.

"Here. Press the teeth into the palm of your hand," she told him, handing him the comb.

Chase arched his eyebrow. "You're serious," he clarified.

"Hey, Lamaze coaches swear by it," Sophie said.

"And women giving birth laugh in their faces and swear by epidurals," Chase retorted.

"Well, until I can invent an epidural for your ankle, you'll just have to try this," she insisted.

Chase glanced at the comb in hesitation, finally taking it, pushing the teeth into his palm. As he did that, Sophie lay down on his chest, slowly caressing his smooth skin there.

"Is it working?" she asked.

He draped his other arm around her back. "A little."

They didn't say anything to each other for almost fifteen minutes.

The entire time, Sophie had been listening to his heart murmur, gently stroking his chest, hoping it would help to relax him and that her comb idea would help until the Ultram kicked in.

"It's subsiding," Chase said, finally breaking the silence.

Sophie looked up at him, resting her chin on his chest. "Good."

Chase placed the comb onto the nightstand and eased back into her embrace. As she held him, a slight frown appeared on Chase's features as he gazed into her deep brown eyes in the semi darkness of the bedroom.

"I wanted to carry you up the stairs tonight," he confessed, his voice soft and apologetic as he brushed a stray lock of hair out of her face.

Sophie gave him a sympathetic smile as she reached up to caress his cheek, which was now sporting a bit of a day's growth of stubble.

"…I wanted to sweep you off your feet—" he continued.

"You did a long time ago," she interrupted him.

As their lips met in a soft, tender kiss, Chase thought of the housewarming present he had planned on giving to her that night.

The small black velvet box holding the present was still in the pocket of his jeans, which were lying on the floor.

But based on what he had planned to say when he gave it to her, he decided to hold off.

"_I'LL GIVE IT TO HER TOMORROW_," Chase told himself, his lips taking sweet possession of hers. 

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**NEXT MORNING:**

At around 11:30 AM, House was standing in Cuddy's kitchen, drinking his third cup of coffee from a red mug, wearing his Sex Pistols T Shirt, a pair of worn in jeans and sneakers when Cuddy entered the room.

House's eyes lingered on her appreciatively, his gaze tracing upwards from the old pair of white Converse low top sneakers she had found in her closet, past her toned, shapely legs that were accented by a pair of cut off denim shorts, up to her skimpy pink halter tank top that proudly showed off her already swelled breasts.

"Are we filming _'Administrators Gone Wild,'_ today at the Chase residence?" House quipped.

Cuddy ignored his comment and glanced over at his red mug with envy.

"You don't care that you're going to get paint on that shirt?" Cuddy mumbled.

"I'm not going to get paint on this shirt because _I_ don't plan on painting. I plan on sitting on Chase's drop cloth covered couch and drinking several beers that he promised would be in his new Sub- Zero fridge," House declared.

Cuddy closed her eyes and rubbed her throbbing forehead with her fingertips, summoning all her willpower not to pour herself a cup of coffee from the pot.

"Caffeine withdrawal?" House asked knowingly.

Cuddy nodded, keeping her eyes closed. "Let's stop at Starbucks on the way. I'll get decaf."

"You know that you're allowed to have a cup of regular coffee if you wanted to," House reminded her.

She shook her head stubbornly. "No."

"Caffeine headaches are relentless… Maybe we should stay home," he suggested, trying to sound as caring as he possibly could.

"We're going," Cuddy stated firmly, grabbing her purse from the table and tossing her keys at House.

House snorted as he deftly caught the keys, his eyes glued to her ass in her cutoffs as she left the kitchen.

Once she was out of sight, he stuck his hand into the front pocket of his jeans.

His fingertips made contact with the note that Cate had left on his desk the day before.

He let them linger for a moment before taking his hand out of his pocket and pouring the remainder of his coffee into Cuddy's sink.

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At around the same time, Wilson and Debbie were in Chase and Sophie's brand new eat- in kitchen, painting the walls Décor White. The table, countertops, cabinets and built- in appliances were covered with drop cloths.

"They picked a nice color for in here," Debbie commented. "It's soft and muted."

"Yep," Wilson agreed as he smoothly covered the wall with paint.

Just then, Chase limped into the kitchen without his cane and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge. Debbie glanced at him briefly before turning back to Wilson.

"So are we going to go hear that band later?" Debbie asked Wilson.

Wilson sighed. "If you really want to."

"Jimmy, this is for our _wedding_. I figured you'd be interested in the planning," she stated.

"I _AM_ interested," he replied. "I just thought we were staying here for dinner."

"The band doesn't go on until ten tonight. We can still stay for dinner," she reminded him.

Chase smirked to himself as he left the room with his water bottle and returned to the dining room, where Sophie was painting the far wall in 'Petal Dust,' a muted neutral color with the slightest touch of pink, with a roller.

"How are they doing in there?" Sophie asked him.

"Debbie's driving him crazy about the wedding, but other than that, the walls look good," Chase replied, taking a sip from the water bottle before giving it to her.

Sophie smiled a bit and took a sip. After she returned the bottle to him, she turned her attention back to the wall she had been painting, viewing it with a critical eye.

"You think we can really finish the entire house in one day?" she asked.

He gave her a sidelong glance, his eyes tracing over her exposed torso and toned abdomen. She had tied the front of her white t- shirt and tucked it underneath the bottom of her bra.

He then impulsively rolled the brush in "Petal Dust" colored paint over her bare stomach, some of it dripping down the her cut off denim shorts. Sophie gasped at the feeling of the cold, wet paint of her skin, looking down at herself.

"Are you starting with me already?" she demanded, fighting a smile that was tugging on her lips.

Chase nodded eagerly. "That's a good color for you," he said with a broad grin.

"We're not filming a porno. We're painting the dining room," she reminded him, grabbing a nearby paint rag.

"My cell takes videos. Can't we do both?" he suggested.

As she wiped the paint off her stomach as best she could, she pressed her palm into the aluminum pan filled with paint that was next to her feet.

She then lovingly caressed one side of Chase's face, making sure to cover his cheek it thoroughly with paint.

Chase stood there with a grimace, closing his eyes as she did so.

"That was mature," he stated.

"You're lucky I didn't put it in your hair," she said with glee.

Chase smirked and wiped the paint off his face with his hand, then wiped the excess off his palm onto the front of his t- shirt.

"Think if it this way. It'll be fun to wash off later," Sophie said sexily.

Just then, the doorbell chimed. Sophie placed her rolling brush carefully into the aluminum pan and grabbed the rag to wipe her hands off a bit more as she headed for the door.

When she opened the door, her lips parted in surprise when she saw Cameron standing on her front step, holding a large Peace Lily potted plant in her arms.

"Hi, Sophie," Cameron said with a friendly smile.

"… Hi," Sophie eventually replied, still surprised to see her.

Cameron's face fell. "Chase didn't tell you I was coming," she stated in exasperation.

Sophie laughed. "… No he didn't, but that's all right. Come on in," she said, taking the large plant from her.

"This is a beautiful place," Cameron commented as she walked into the foyer.

"Thank you," Sophie said. "And thank you for the plant," she added, looking for a place to put it down without getting paint on it.

"Hey, you made it!" Chase said, smiling at Cameron as he limped into the foyer.

"You didn't tell Sophie I was coming?" Cameron demanded lightly with an arched eyebrow.

Chase nervously glanced from Cameron to Sophie, who was staring at him with the same look on her face as Cameron's.

Sensing he just might be in a lot of trouble, Chase immediately directed his attention to the plant Sophie was holding.

"Let me help you with that, sweetie," Chase said, taking the plant from her in a gallant fashion. 

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A little while later, Wilson was painting one of the walls in one of the two smaller bedrooms that Chase had set up as their media room.

House was in the room with him, looking out the window down onto the deck, where Cuddy was lounging on an outdoor chaise, sipping from a glass of lemonade that Sophie had made her.

Debbie was sitting next to her, eagerly showing her pictures from various magazines of at least thirty wedding gowns.

"Looks like Bridezilla found a new victim," House commented.

"Thank god," Wilson muttered.

House turned towards Wilson, arching his eyebrow in intrigue.

"Look. I love her, and I want to marry her, but why should I bother to give her my opinion when I know it's going to be rejected anyway?" Wilson asked.

"This is your fourth marriage. I thought you'd be used to that by now," House stated.

Wilson narrowed his eyes at the wall he had just painted. "How does that look?" he asked House.

House sat down on the drop cloth covered couch in front of the wall, taking a sip from his beer bottle, staring at the wall that Wilson had just painted for a brief moment.

"Wet," House said. "And Pink," he added.

"It's not pink," Wilson argued, picking up the nearby paint can. "It's… '_Oleander_,'" Wilson said as he read the name off the can.

"It's _pink_. Congratulate your sister. Chase is totally whipped," House said.

"And you're _not_? You're here too," Wilson pointed out.

"…Kind of hard to say no to a pregnant woman who happens to be your boss," House said, putting the beer bottle to his lips.

Wilson stopped the rolling brush on the wall and froze for a second. He then turned to House, his eyes ready to pop out of his head, his mouth agape.

"…Cuddy's _PREGNANT_?!" Wilson exclaimed.

"I believe that was the general idea," House replied.

"Congratulations! That's wonderful!" Wilson said with a huge smile on his face.

"We're only at three weeks, so don't get too excited," House said.

"And keep your mouth shut. I don't need all the idiots that I try to avoid all day at work congratulating me every minute," he added.

"My lips are sealed," Wilson promised, pretending to zip up his lip.

House rolled his eyes, taking another long sip of his beer.

"So how's Cuddy feeling?" Wilson asked.

"She's already peeing like a racehorse, going through caffeine withdrawal, she's tired and her breasts are tender. I made sure to check that last one thoroughly," House said with a nod.

Wilson furrowed his brow a bit. "…You don't seem too happy," he noted.

"Like I said. It's very early on in the pregnancy. We're taking it one day at a time just in case—" House began.

"No," Wilson interrupted him, knowing House all too well. "There's something else."

House met Wilson's inquisitive stare and exhaled.

He then raised his lower body off the couch just a bit as he dug into the pocket of his jeans. He produced a folded piece of paper and reached out to Wilson with it, saying nothing.

Wilson took the paper from House's hand, unfolded it and read it a few times. House kept his gaze on him, waiting for some kind of reaction.

"This can't be who I think it is," Wilson said, still reading the note.

"How many psychiatrists stationed at the South Pole do you think I've treated?" House asked.

Wilson shrugged, turning down his lower lip. "It's nice. She wants to thank you."

"She wants to catch up. I don't catch up with patients."

"So meet her in the cafeteria for a quick cup of coffee and then find a way to excuse yourself after a few minutes," Wilson said, picking up his roller brush again.

House rubbed the back of his neck.

"… Be kind of rude, wouldn't it?" House said, hesitatingly.

Wilson turned back towards House, confused.

"Since when do _you_ care about being rude to anyone?" Wilson asked.

"And why would she want to see you after all this time?" he added.

"I did save her life," House pointed out.

"You save a lot of people's lives. And didn't you make some guy drill a hole in her head?" Wilson asked.

"Sean," House replied. "He drank her urine, too," he added.

"_YOU REMEMBER THE GUY'S NAME_?" Wilson demanded, now completely stunned.

"Here we go," House muttered in annoyance.

"You never remember _ANYBODY'S_ name! If you remember _THIS GUY'S_ name…" Wilson said, trailing off.

House looked away from Wilson, suddenly becoming fascinated with the drop cloth that was covering the floor.

"When you read this note, did it bring up any… _FEELINGS_?" Wilson asked.

"It was probably indigestion. I ate the chili from the cafeteria yesterday—" House began in an attempt to deflect.

"She wants to see you… and you're coming to _ME_ because you want to see _HER_… but you think that it's _WRONG_ that you want to see her," Wilson said, finally making his way through the maze of House's brain.

"See that's what's so great about you. I don't even have to talk," House quipped.

"House, there's nothing wrong with having a cup of coffee with her," Wilson assured him.

House pushed himself off the couch and limped back over to the window, gazing at Cuddy, who was still lounging in the chaise on Chase and Sophie's deck.

"…There isn't?" House said softly.

"Nope," Wilson replied.

"As long as its just coffee," Wilson added.

TBC…


	3. Chapter 3

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS FOR READING, REVIEWING AND FOR BEING SO PATIENT! I HAD TO MAKE SOME LAST MINUTE REVISIONS ON THIS CHAPTER.**

**AND HERE IT IS!**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 3: Please read and comment.**

That night, House, Cuddy, Wilson, Cameron and Chase were all relaxing on Chase and Sophie's deck in the back of their condo.

The pizza they had ordered earlier was almost completely gone, and the beer and wine was almost completely drunk.

House stretched his body out one of the several chaise lounges, an almost empty bottle of Heineken in his hand.

"Nothing like a day of manual labor and then relaxing with a cold one," House said.

Wilson swallowed the beer in his mouth, turning towards House from his position at the outdoor glass topped table.

"Except you didn't actually _DO_ any manual labor," Wilson pointed out.

House paused for a moment. "Neither did she," he said, jutting his chin at Cuddy, who was sitting next to Wilson at the table, finishing up her second slice of veggie pizza.

"I helped Sophie unpack all of her stuff," Cuddy reminded him.

"Yeah, right after you were done with your early afternoon nap," House snarked.  

"You take longer naps in the Clinic then I did today. And _you're_ not growing a life," Cuddy shot back.

Cameron chuckled. "Are you feeling nauseous yet?" she asked, taking a sip of her wine as she crossed her ankles on her own chaise.

"No, just really tired," Cuddy replied, taking a sip of her sparkling water.

"And firmer," House added.

Just then, Sophie opened the glass sliding door and walked out onto the deck holding a bottle of water and Chase's pills. Chase smiled at her thankfully as he took the bottle of Ultram from her, opened the top, swallowed his pill dry and chased it with a swig of water.

After Chase put the top back on the medicine bottle, he snaked his arm around Sophie's waist and pulled her onto his lap. Their lips met tenderly for a moment. Sophie then brushed some stray locks of hair out of Chase's eyes.

"You _did_ get paint in your hair," she murmured.

"You're the one who said it'd be fun to wash off later," Chase whispered into her ear as he slipped his hand underneath the back of her t- shirt.

At that moment, Debbie came out onto the deck from inside the house, holding a very thick copy of Brides magazine in her hand that was littered with post- its. She had a very enthusiastic expression on her face.

"Sophie, I _HAVE_ to show you this dress I found for you for the wedding," Debbie stated, pulling up an empty chair at the table next to Chase and Sophie.

Sophie glanced across the table at her brother who gave her a sheepish smile in return. She then turned back to Debbie who had already turned to the page she had marked off.

"What do you think? It's gorgeous, right?" Debbie asked excitedly.

Sophie stared blankly at the picture of the tea- length bright shamrock green strapless dress that Debbie had chosen.

Sophie's eyes were drawn immediately to the bright yellow sash that was tied around the smiling model's waist, wondering how the hell she could be smiling wearing a dress like that.

She looked up from the magazine at Debbie's face, who smile was even brighter than the model's in the magazine.

"…It's… nice," Sophie said hesitantly.

Debbie's smile immediately faded. "You don't like it?"

"No, I'm not saying that… it's just… not a dress that I would normally wear," Sophie replied.

"Well of course it's not. It's a _bridesmaid's_ dress. You'd be wearing it at my _wedding_," Debbie reminded her, a hint of irritation in her voice.

Chase, Cameron, Cuddy and Wilson exchanged uncomfortable glances at the tension that was rising on the deck between Sophie and Debbie.

House merely smiled just a bit.

"Does it come in any other colors?" Sophie asked, clearly unimpressed with Debbie's choice.

"These are the colors I picked for the wedding. Your bouquet is going to be yellow roses to match the sash," Debbie answered in a clipped tone.

Sophie didn't feel that this was the appropriate time to remind Debbie that she hated roses.

"How much does it cost?" Sophie asked instead.

"Two hundred fifty," Debbie replied with a shrug.

Sophie exhaled. "… Debbie I'm not working right now. It's really not feasible for me to spend two hundred fifty dollars on a dress that I'm only going to wear once," she told her brother's fiancée.

"But you have all that money that you won from the poker tournament. I'm _sure_ you can afford two hundred and fifty dollars," Debbie replied flippantly.

Sophie's eyebrows shot up, a curt laugh escaping her throat.

Chase grimaced a bit at Debbie's comment. He knew that Sophie was saving her money for her school loans and to help Chase with the expenses of their new home.

But he held his tongue, having no desire to get in the middle of the conversation between the two women.

"I'm _SO_ glad you forced me to come here today," House said to Cuddy.

Sophie looked Wilson pointedly, her eyes demanding that he come to her defense. Wilson cleared his throat and leaned forward in his chair.

"Debbie… maybe we should discuss this another time," Wilson said with a meaningful gaze.

Debbie pursed her lips together and met Wilson's eyes for a moment.

She then closed the magazine and placed it on her lap. An injured expression overtook her pretty features.

"Better you get used to disappointment now," House said.

"What does that mean?" Debbie demanded lightly.

"Well, you're not only marrying a doctor, but you're marrying an oncologist who happens to be best friends with me. It's the trifecta for a life of misery," House replied.

"So what's new with you, Cameron?" Cuddy said brisky, attempting to change the subject.

"…Well, I do have some news," Cameron began after a pause.

Chase turned towards her with interest, noting her brightened expression.

"Sebastian asked me to go to Africa with him," Cameron revealed.

Chase's mouth slowly gaped open.

"What did you tell him?" Chase asked, stunned.

"I told him 'yes,'" Cameron replied with a smile.

Sophie glanced around at all the faces on the deck. Everyone was visibly surprised.

But none of them were as surprised as Chase.

"I leave in three months," Cameron added.

"You're going all the way to another continent to be with the man you love. That's so romantic," Debbie gushed.

"Yeah, when I think of Africa, the _FIRST_ thing I think of is romance. Right after poverty, civil war, famine, AIDS, Angelina Jolie—" House said.

"I thought you said that you too were spoiled medically to go to Africa," Chase reminded her, interrupting House's rant.

"Sometimes not relying on the technological crutches of MRI and CT scans makes you a better diagnostician," Cameron replied.

"I ask you. What fun is it to be a doctor if you don't get to play with the big toys?" House quipped to everyone.

"Do you know how many vaccinations you'll need?" Chase demanded of her, completely ignoring House's interjections.

"Typhoid, Hep A and B, Diphtheria, TB, Rabies, Meningococcal Meningitis, Yellow Fever, Tetanus and Polio. Sebastian gave me the schedule," Cameron said casually.

Chase then gently pushed Sophie off his lap so he could face Cameron square on.

"We treated Sebastian for a resistant strain of TB. What if _you_ get it?" Chase asked her, his voice becoming more interrogational at each sentence.

House tilted his head in extreme interest at Chase's obvious concern for Cameron. He then darted a glance at Sophie, who had taken an empty seat next to Chase at the table.

Sophie's face was serene as she silently listened to Chase and Cameron's exchange.

But House had the distinct feeling that she was about to explode at any moment.

"I'm not worried," Cameron said in the same calm tone.

At this, Chase turned his attention towards House.

"Aren't you gonna say something to her?" Chase demanded of the older man.

"…What do you want me to say?" House asked calmly, his lips poised in amusement.

"She _LISTENS_ to you! Call her an idiot, like you always do! Tell her that she's willingly putting herself in a dangerous situation—" Chase began.

"_Why do you care so much_?" Sophie suddenly demanded out of nowhere.

Everyone snapped their heads around to face Sophie, almost in unison.

House smiled inwardly, reveling at the fact that he was right about Sophie's feelings.

"Cameron's an adult. She can take care of herself. And if she wants to go to Africa, why is it any of YOUR business?!" Sophie continued, the anger evident in her voice.

Feeling extremely awkward and embarrassed, Cameron looked down at her lap.

"…Because… I'm her friend—" Chase began.

"You're her '_friend_,'" Sophie repeated in disgust. "It's amazes me that you never seem to show this much concern for any of your _other_ friends."

"That's because Chase isn't friends with any of the other women he's had sex with," House interjected.

Sophie glared angrily at House as Chase's eyes bugged out of his head.

Feeling a flush of humiliation on her cheeks, Sophie brusquely got up from the table.

Chase reached for her hand in an attempt to keep her there, but Sophie ripped her arm out of his grasp and stormed into the house.

"Nicely done," Wilson muttered in contempt at House as he got up from the table to go after his sister.

But he then felt Cuddy's hand on his.

"You stay here," Cuddy told him. "I'll go talk to her." 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

A few moments later, Cuddy found Sophie in her new kitchen, tying up a filled garbage bag.  

"Need some help?" Cuddy asked gently.

"No, it's ok. I got it," Sophie replied, her voice slightly shaky, wiping her face with the back of her hand.

Cuddy could tell by her tone that she had been crying. She crossed the room to her and saw that her eyes were glassy.

"I'm sorry about what Greg said," Cuddy apologized.

"Don't you get ever get sick of apologizing for him?" Sophie asked, barely above a whisper.

"I'm used to it by now," Cuddy sighed.

"…I'm sorry about the scene I caused back there," Sophie muttered, embarrassed.

Cuddy smiled a bit. "It was understandable. I was kinda surprised at Chase's reaction, too."

Sophie exhaled in deep exhaustion. She let go of the garbage bag and leaned back against the counter, slumping her shoulder.

"I gave up a lot for Robbie," Sophie said wearily.

"I transferred schools, I lost credits, I have to redo my Grand Rounds this summer from last semester…" she continued.

Cuddy nodded in understanding, saying nothing as she listened.

Sophie shrugged miserably. "He didn't even tell me that Cameron was coming today. She just showed up," she said glumly.

For a moment, Cuddy considered telling Sophie that everything was going to be all right.

But then she stopped herself, knowing that Sophie wasn't someone who liked a sugar- coated version of the truth.

"You're not going to change anything between Chase and Cameron. They have a history together, and they'll always be close," Cuddy said instead.

"I know that. I'm not saying that I want to change anything between them—" Sophie protested.

"Part of you does," Cuddy interrupted, meeting her eyes.

Sophie pursed her lips together. "I'm terrible, right?" she asked.

"No. You're _HUMAN_," Cuddy replied.

"But we're living together now. I shouldn't feel so insecure about things between us," Sophie pointed out.

"I'm pregnant with Greg's child. You don't think that if he was still close with some woman from his past that I'd be jealous?" Cuddy countered.

Sophie raised her eyebrows, truly surprised by Cuddy's statement.

She had never known Cuddy to be envious of any other woman.

"Lucky for me House burns every bridge behind him," Cuddy said with a smirk.

"Am I interrupting anything?" Chase suddenly asked from the entranceway to the kitchen.

Cuddy and Sophie turned around to see him. He was holding the pizza box and the paper plates from dinner. His posture was hesitant. His face was adorably apologetic.

"Not at all," Cuddy replied. She then exited the kitchen, leaving the two of them alone.

After Cuddy left, Chase placed the items he had been holding on their round kitchen table.

"You didn't have to bother with that," Sophie said, walking towards the table with a new garbage bag in her hand.

But before she could throw out the items that Chase had brought in from the deck, he gently grabbed her wrist and pulled her towards him. Sophie reluctantly allowed him to do so, but refused to meet his eyes.

He touched her chin gently, tilting her face up to meet his gaze.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, but sincerely.

Sophie shook her head. "No… I overreacted—" she began.

"No you didn't," Chase insisted with the same soft and gentle tone.

"You were right. Cameron's an adult. I shouldn't have gone on the way I did," Chase said.

"…You care about her," Sophie said, despite how much her own sentence hurt to say out loud.

"But I care about you more," Chase replied simply.

Sophie smiled, still feeling a bit sad.

"And I shouldn't have invited her here without checking with you first," he added.

"You don't have to check with me every time you want to have someone over."

"This is your house, too," Chase said. "And I didn't respect you by doing that."

Sophie's smiled a bit more. "So I guess I should tell you before inviting any of my exes over?" she joked.

Chase laughed and pulled her into a hug. Sophie relaxed into his embrace and let out a breath that she didn't even know she was holding in.

She then felt Chase move slightly as he reached into his front pocket for something. Sophie backed up a bit as Chase presented her with a small, black velvet box.

"Housewarming present," Chase said at her surprised expression.

"I- I didn't get you anything," she said, shaking her head a bit.

"Yes you did," he said tenderly, gazing at her meaningfully.

Chase kept his eyes on her as she opened the box.

She gasped aloud upon seeing a one inch long 18 Karat white gold Tiffany key charm nestled in the box. The top of the key was in the shape of a heart, embedded with twenty- four small, round brilliant diamonds. The elegant charm was attached to a white gold chain.

Sophie felt her breath catch. "…Robbie…" she whispered, still in awe of the gift.

"I was going to tell you that you hold the key to my heart," Chase said, his voice full of emotion.  "But I thought that might sound a little lame," he added sheepishly.

Still holding the box, Sophie pulled him closer to her and kissed him softly.

"I like lame," she whispered against his lips. 

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

Later that night, House was watching TMZ on Cuddy's TV in her bedroom while Cuddy was reading her copy of "What To Expect When You're Expecting."

"So you'd really be jealous if an old flame came back into my life?" House suddenly said.

Cuddy turned towards House, the book flopping down on her lap.

"You were eavesdropping on my conversation with Sophie in the kitchen the entire time?" she demanded.

"Like you're surprised," House quipped.

Cuddy snorted and went back to her book.

House thought of the note from Cate that was still in the pocket of his jeans and the conversation that he had with Wilson earlier that day.

"_THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH HAVING A CUP OF COFFEE WITH HER… AS LONG AS IT'S JUST COFFEE_," Wilson's voice echoed in his mind.

"So I was wondering if we should move in together," House suddenly stated.

Cuddy froze for a moment. She turned back towards House, slowly this time.

"You… wanna move in with me?" Cuddy clarified.

"I'm here almost every night anyway," House began with a shrug.

"And that _IS_ my kid in there, right?" he asked.

A tiny chuckle escaped Cuddy's lips. "Yeah."

"What's a better way to have a bad influence on your own spawn than living in sin with his mother?" House asked, his bright blue eyes sparkling.

Cuddy licked her lower lip. "Is that your way of saying that you want to take our relationship to the next level?" she asked him.

"Sure. Ruin the moment," he muttered, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.  

"You're not bringing your porn collection into my home," Cuddy declared before leaning over and capturing his lips in a passionate kiss.

TBC…

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**A/N: TO SEE A PICTURE OF CHASE'S PRESENT TO SOPHIE, CLICK ON THIS LINK: **.?sku=GRP02503&mcat=148204&cid=573050&fromGrid=1&search_params=s+5-p+5-c+573050-r+-x+-n+6-ri+-ni+0-t+


	4. Chapter 4

**WHEW! FINALLY FINISHED.**

**SORRY FOR THE WAIT. IT'S A LONG CHAPTER.**

**BUT HERE IT IS!**

**THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING AND FOR ALL OF YOUR WONDERFUL REVIEWS!!**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS ON THIS CHAPTER AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 4: Please read and comment.**

"So I was wondering if we should move in together," House suddenly stated.

Cuddy froze for a moment. She turned back towards House, slowly this time.

"You… wanna move in with me?" Cuddy clarified.

"I'm here almost every night anyway," House began with a shrug.

"And that IS my kid in there, right?" he asked.

A tiny chuckle escaped Cuddy's lips. "Yeah."

"What's a better way to have a bad influence on your own spawn than living in sin with his mother?" House asked, his bright blue eyes sparkling.

Cuddy licked her lower lip. "Is that your way of saying that you want to take our relationship to the next level?" she asked him.

"Sure. Ruin the moment," he muttered, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.  

"You're not bringing your porn collection into my home," Cuddy declared before leaning over and capturing his lips in a kiss.

House gently wrapped his arms around her, exploring her lips with his own. He slowly rolled her over slightly onto her back, nestling his body close against hers. She tilted her head back and her eyes fluttered closed while he brushed his lips across her jawline and down her neck.

Cuddy inhaled in pleasure at the sensation of his gentle kisses and the feel of his hand caressing her torso. She wrapped her leg around his hip, being careful of his leg, waiting in anticipation for House to reach her breasts.

But his hand stopped just underneath the curve of her breast, pausing his kisses on her neck. He rested the side of his head against her shoulders. Cuddy could feel his hesitation.

"…You ok?" she asked him.

"Your breasts… I… don't want to hurt you," he said gruffly.

Cuddy started at House in slight surprise. She'd never seen him so reluctant when they were together.

"…I'd never want to hurt you," he continued in the same voice.

Cuddy shook her head a bit. "I know that," still confused at his reluctance.

He lowered his eyes down to her breasts, still hesitant to touch them.

She then ran her hand through his closely cropped hair, the grey strands feathering through her fingers.

"Just be gentle. I trust you," she whispered.

House looked up at her to meet her loving gaze. She was smiling at him.

He thought of Cate's note burning a hole in his pocket and the feelings that it had stirred up deep down inside him upon reading it.

And he hated himself for it.

"What's wrong?" she asked softly.

He placed his hand on Cuddy's belly, thinking of his unborn child growing inside her.

And that there was no way he could possibly tell Cuddy about Cate and the note that she had left.

"… It's ridiculous to think that I can hurt the baby, right?" he said instead in a sheepish voice.

Cuddy laughed. "You sure you went to Hopkins?" she snarked.

"I got kicked out for cheating before I could take '_Boinking Your Pregnant Boss 101_,'" House said, finding his usual demeanor once again.

Cuddy kissed him, smiling against his lips.

"Yes it's ridiculous. You can't hurt the baby," she assured him. 

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**SUNDAY AFTERNOON. HOUSE'S APARTMENT:**

True to his nature, House had decided that if he was going to move into Cuddy's place, then he wasn't going to waste any time doing it.

And, also true to his nature, he wasn't about to pack up all his crap by himself.

He called Foreman that morning, telling him that if he didn't come to help that he was fired. He told Chase that if he had helped that he'd split the profits of their bet on Wilson's marriage 60/ 40.

But when he had told Wilson that he needed his help as well, Wilson didn't hesitate for a second, telling him that he'd be right over.

"So what wedding obligation did this gig spring you from?" House said as he emptied out one of his kitchen drawers of various utensils that he never used.

Wilson glanced up at him for a moment as he wrapped whatever bowls House happened to have in his cabinets individually in newspaper.

"Seeing another catering hall," Wilson replied.

"You must be devastated," House stated in sarcasm.

"You think we can go slower? She's got us seeing another videographer at four," Wilson said.

"Do people really ever watch their wedding videos?" House asked, dumping the utensils that had most likely never seen the outside of that drawer in years into a waiting cardboard box.

"If they're forced to," Wilson replied. "Why do you have so many kitchen gadgets if you only eat canned soup and peanut butter?" he asked, jutting his chin out.

House narrowed his eyes into the back of the drawer, finding an extremely rusty set of corn holders.

He tried to reach into the back of the drawer to retrieve them, wondering if he was up to date on his tetanus boosters.

"…Stacy left me all the kitchen stuff when we broke up," he said distractedly, his focus still on the back of the drawer.

Wilson stopped wrapping the glass and stared at House, stunned.

House, feeling Wilson's stare, looked up from the drawer.

"_What_?" House demanded.

Wilson blinked. "No _snark_? No witty comment about using a spatula as a sexual aid?" he asked.

"The spatula's a fly swatter," House clarified.

Wilson nodded slightly, narrowing his eyes in curiosity.

"The _melon baller_ on the other hand—" House began.

"Too much sentimental value to part with them?" Wilson interrupted.

"Too busy downloading porn to order flatware online," House muttered.

Wilson lifted his head a touch, his eyes still narrowed, knowing his friend too long to believe him for a minute.

"You tell Cuddy about Cate's note yet?" Wilson asked.

"No," House replied, finally having retrieved the corn holders.

He then promptly threw them in a nearby trashcan.

Wilson arched his eyebrow.

"Why not?" he asked.

"She's pregnant. I'm not gonna do anything to upset her," House explained.

"Why would having a simple cup of coffee with a former patient _upset_ her?" Wilson asked pointedly.

House took his Vicodin out of his pocket, downed a pill and promptly replaced the cap.

"Think I should just throw out the rest of this crap?" House asked, opening up another cabinet and completely evading Wilson's question, putting his meds on the counter.

"…Unless… you think it's going to turn into _MORE_ than a cup of coffee…" Wilson continued. 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

At the same time House and Wilson were packing up House's kitchen, Chase and Foreman were in House's living room, taking what seemed like hundreds of books off his his bookshelves and placing them in cardboard boxes.

"So Cameron's really going to the Central African Republic with this guy?" Foreman asked.

"Yep," Chase replied, narrowing his eyes a bit as he read the spine on one of House's books.

Foreman arched his brow. "And you think she's making a mistake," he stated.

Chase shot Foreman an impatient glance.

"Can you picture Cameron in a poverty stricken developing country?" he demanded.

"Actually, yes. I'm surprised that she doesn't have 'Doctors Without Borders' or the Peace Corps on her resume," Foreman replied.

Chase shrugged and placed the _Allergy and Immunology_ text he was holding into the cardboard box beneath him.

"Are you really concerned about her well- being, or is it something else?" Foreman pressed.

Chase glared at Foreman, pulling his bottle of Ultram out of his pocket.

"… It's nothing else," he muttered before swallowing a dose.

"Hypothetical situation," House stated to Chase and Foreman out of nowhere as he limped into the living room, causing the two men to turn their attention to House.

Wilson followed House into the living room with a withered, exasperated look.

"Let's say you're in a relationship with one woman, and _another_ woman from your past makes contact with you and wants to catch up on old times. Good idea or bad idea?" House posed.

"_Bad_ idea," Foreman stated quickly and emphatically.

Chase narrowed his brow at Foreman. "You answered that pretty fast," he commented.

"Only two results can come out of that scenario. Either you wind up cheating on the woman you're _CURRENTLY_ seeing with the old girlfriend, or you reminisce about the past, which becomes an idealized version of the truth and you start to have doubts about the person you're with. Either way, it's a bad idea," Foreman said.

"Or… you talk about what's going on in your lives now and both parties get closure which allows each of you to move on with your life," Chase countered, turning away from Foreman and towards House.

House smirked at Chase.

"You were always the creative one," he commented.

At this, Chase smiled triumphantly at Foreman, causing Foreman to grunt in disgust.

"Catching up with an old friend is simple. If there was sex involved, it's complicated," Foreman said.

"Was there sex involved?" Chase asked Wilson, assuming they were talking about him.

"… Uh…" Wilson began.

"No," House answered promptly for him.

Both Chase and Foreman turned to House in unison, with matching grimaces. House immediately looked at the floor, leaning on his cane.

"This… _'hypothetical situation'_ isn't about him?" Chase asked, nodding once at Wilson.

House looked up at both men, his stomach feeling queasy.

He then took the folded piece of paper he'd been carrying since Friday out of his back pocket and held it out to Foreman.

"You're still carrying it around with you?!" Wilson exclaimed.  

"You think I should leave it on Cuddy's makeup vanity with a big neon arrow pointing at it instead?" House shot back.

Foreman unfolded the note and read it to himself. Chase limped over to Foreman, craning his neck to get a better look at it.

"Oh yeah. She came into your office the other day," Foreman commented.

"I don't remember you treating a woman from the South Pole," Chase said to House.

"You weren't in that episode," House said dismissively.

House then turned back to Foreman, leaving Chase with a confused expression on his face.

"… How'd she look?" House asked Foreman after a thoughtful pause.

"She looked good," Foreman admitted with a shrug.

"Which is why you _CAN'T_ have coffee with her," he added quickly. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 

**MONDAY MORNING:**

Early the following morning, Chase and Sophie were waiting on line at the Campus Coffee Shop. Being that it was her first day of Grand Rounds at Princeton Plainsboro, Sophie had decided to dress up a bit.

"So you excited for your first day?" Chase asked, admiring her from behind in her knee length charcoal skirt, plum v- neck t- shirt and heels.

"I'm nervous," she admitted, moving a bit up on the line.

"For what? Most of Grand Rounds is lecture, anyway," Chase reminded her.

"It's not that," she said.

"… It's stupid. And childish," she muttered.

"You can tell me," Chase coaxed her gently.

"I always get nervous on the first day of a new semester. I never get a good night's sleep the night before. It's like I'm in grade school all over again," she admitted with embarrassment.

Chase leaned over to her.

"I couldn't sleep the night before I started the NICU," he whispered in her ear, taking in the scent of her vanilla and white lily perfume.

"Really?" she asked, feeling a tingle from his body so close to hers.

Chase wrapped his arms around her from behind, leaning over, placing a kiss on her cheek.

"I'm sure the other kids are very nice. You'll make plenty of friends," Chase teased.

Sophie laughed out loud. "Thanks, dad," she replied.

"Good morning, Dr. Chase," a male voice said from behind them on line.

Chase turned around to see one of the first year interns from the hospital. A friend of his was standing next to him on the line.

"Morning," Chase replied nonchalantly with a little nod, as he turned his attention back to Sophie.

He had recognized the young intern and his friend, having seen the two guys around the hospital quite a bit that year. He had no idea what their names were.

And at the moment, he didn't really have much interest in finding out.

"So how was the game last night?" the intern's friend asked him.

"Eh, I got cleaned out," the sandy brown haired intern shrugged.

"Oh yeah? What happened?" his friend asked with interest.

"I went all in on the last hand. I thought I had it," the intern muttered.

Still facing away from the two guys, Sophie's ears perked up at their conversation.

"What were you holding?" the friend asked.

"King, Queen, Jack, Nine. Just needed _ONE_ more card for the straight, and I was dealt a Four," the intern told him, obviously irritated at his loss.

Upon hearing this, Sophie laughed out loud.

His arms still wrapped around her, Chase looked down at her with surprise and slight amusement.

The young male intern cocked his head. "Did I say something funny?" he asked her in a condescending way.

Sophie turned around to face the intern, noticing that he was quite handsome and exuded a confidence he most likely didn't possess.

Which only made what she was about to do even more fun.

"You went all in on a gut shot straight," Sophie stated simply.

The intern scrunched up his face at her, not familiar with the term she had just used.

"The ten was missing," Sophie explained. "Since there's only four possibilities of hitting the straight, you only had a ten percent chance of catching the hand."

A slow smile crept across Chase's lips.

"Basic rookie mistake," she added, before turning back to the register.

By now, Chase was grinning broadly. He popped his eyebrows up at both young men, who were standing there visibly shocked and impressed.

As the young, handsome intern watched Chase and Sophie pay for their coffees and leave the place holding hands, he became even more intrigued.

"_WHO_ is that and _WHY_ is she with Dr. Chase?" the guy's friend asked him.

"…I have no idea," the intern replied, watching Sophie leave the coffee shop, thinking that by the end of the day, he was going to find out. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

A little while later, House pulled his motorcycle into his space in the parking lot in front of the hospital. Cuddy had come into work that morning way before he had even woken up, leaving him a note that she had an early meeting, which was fine with him. Despite the fact that he got an erection just thinking about her on the back of his bike, he wasn't crazy about her riding with him in her condition.

After turning off the engine and dismounting the bike, he took off his helmet only to see Cate Milton walking up to him across the parking lot, smiling.

At first, House froze in his tracks, thinking he should bolt.

But quickly remembering that he wasn't able to run anywhere, he just stood there, taking her all in with his eyes.

Still slim, curvaceous and beautiful, her straight, and now brown hair was down about her shoulders. She was wearing slim fitting black slacks, a form fitting ivory blouse and heels, her messenger bag slung over her shoulder.

She finally reached him, a tiny, sweet, yet cryptic smile on her face.

"You changed your hair," House commented, his eyes meeting hers.

"Just let the highlights grow out," she replied, becoming reacquainted and mesmerized by his bright cerulean eyes.

"How long have you been back?" he asked.

"Couple weeks," she said.

"You waited that long to come stalk me? I'm insulted."

"Moving back into my apartment and my new office bumped you down the priority list," she volleyed in return.

House couldn't help smile a bit at her response, remembering how she had met him at each remark when he had treated her a year ago via webcam.

"So does this count as catching up, or do I have to see you again?" he asked.

Cate smirked. "You think you can suffer through a cup of coffee or something?"

At that very moment, all of the advice that Foreman had given to him yesterday was echoing in House's head. He could hear his rational side agreeing with Foreman's advice.

That nothing good could come out of this reunion.

But just as he was about to tell her that he was too busy, he heard Chase's voice and his annoying accent somewhere in the recesses of his mind:

"_YOU TALK ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON IN YOUR LIVES NOW AND BOTH PARTIES GET CLOSURE WHICH ALLOWS EACH OF YOU TO MOVE ON WITH YOUR LIFE._"

House tilted his head at Cate.

"Are you buying?" he asked her.

TBC…


	5. Chapter 5

**HI EVERYONE!**

**SORRY FOR THE DELAY. I WANTED TO GET THIS CHAPTER JUST RIGHT.**

**THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING AND REVIEWING!!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 5: Please read and comment.**

A short time later, Cate was paying the cashier in the hospital cafeteria for her and House's coffees when House sensed he was being watched.

He turned around and surveyed the café seating area, seeing the usual milieu of attendings, residents, nurses and patient's families at tables.

And then his focus honed in on one table in the far corner.

All he could see was someone holding up a newspaper in front of them. The newspaper was completely folded out, blocking the view of whoever was behind it.

House glanced underneath the table and saw a man's legs, clad in dark slacks, socks and shoes.

He then directed his eyes back to the table top, where a large cup of coffee and an open cream cheesed bagel with lox was resting.

"When people give themselves away, it's the little things," House muttered as Cate took her change back from the cashier.

"What?" Cate asked.

House kept his eyes on the table for a moment. He then shook his head dismissively.

"Nothing," he said.

"Is this good?" Cate says, motioning to a free table near the register.

House nodded. The two of them made their way over to the table and sat down across from each other.

Cate proceeded to pour the contents of two sugar packets into her coffee as House gazed at her across the table contemplatively.

"So why'd you come back?" House asked.

Cate looked up from her coffee, slightly surprised at how direct his question was.

"Was it the weather, or did you just miss cable TV?" House prodded.

Cate shrugged as she turned back to her coffee, stirring it with a spoon.

"My research was done," she replied.

"You and Sean didn't work out," House stated bluntly.

Cate chuckled a bit. "Do I have the words '_just broke up with my mechanic_' written on my forehead or something?"

House didn't answer her. He just kept his slightly penetrating gaze on her, waiting for her to crack.

Cate slumped her shoulders a bit, a tiny, resigning exhale escaping her nose. She took a sip of her coffee, placing it down carefully on the tabletop.

"After you treated me, Sean told me how he felt about me," Cate began.

House leaned back in his chair, his facial expression remaining stoic, keeping his eyes on her.

"…We tried it for a while, but… I… didn't share his feelings," she continued.

"So after he drank your urine, drilled a hole in your head and reset your toe, you left him out in the cold. Literally," House said.

Cate smirked. "How long have you been waiting to use that line?"

"Since this morning," he said.

"You can force yourself to love someone," she said with a sheepish half- smile, looking back down at her coffee.

"No, you can't," he agreed.

"…_You also can't help who you fall in love with_," Cate added, her eyes locking on his once more.

House didn't reply to this. He merely met her eyes with his own, his facial expression revealing nothing.

Cate leaned back in her chair. "So. How are you?" she asked in a slightly brighter tone.

"Great," House replied.

Cate waited patiently for him to continue.

When he didn't, she arched her eyebrow.

"…That's it?" she asked.

"What else do you want to know?" he asked.

At this, Cate raised both eyebrows. She had figured that House wasn't a huge conversationalist, but she had honestly expected more than this.

"How's your leg? What have you been doing for the past year?" she probed.

"Same for both," he said.

Cate began to feel slightly uncomfortable. She remembered their flirty banter when he had examined her via webcam from his apartment. How he had played Marvin Gaye's '_Let's Get it On_,' during the exam.

On camera on the other side of the world, she had played it off as an extremely inappropriate joke.

She had never let him know in any way that she had secretly found it a turn on.

"…Anyone… special in your life?" she asked.

Just then, Cuddy walked into the cafeteria, holding a dark blue file folder.

At first, she stopped in her tracks when she saw House sitting at the table with another woman.

The woman was seated at the table, her back facing Cuddy, her long, straight brown hair lightly brushing the tops of her shoulders.

Cuddy didn't recognize her from the back. She wasn't wearing a doctor's lab coat or scrubs.

And the stoic, slightly bored look on House's face told her that she must have been a patient's family member.

She strode up to House's table, holding the file folder up a bit.

"Got a case," Cuddy announced.

At the sound of Cuddy's voice, House felt his stomach leap up into his throat.

Quickly reminding himself that he wasn't doing anything wrong at the moment, he forced himself to calm down.

Despite the lurch in his emotions, his facial expression hadn't changed in the slightest. He honed in on the dark blue folder.

"File kinda gave it away," he commented.

"Twenty- eight year old male with high fever, nausea, vomiting, chills, muscle aches, sore throat and a rash," Cuddy rattled off.

"Thought you only dealt with unusual cases. Sounds like either influenza or strep," Cate said offhandedly.

Cuddy glanced at Cate for a moment with raised eyebrows, finding herself amused, puzzled and a bit put off by this woman's unsolicited opinion.

_How could this woman know what kind of cases House dealt with and why would she would bother to comment on the simplicity of the case?  _

House glanced for a brief second at Cate.

"Wait for it..." he told her in a leading tone before turning back to Cuddy.

House arched his eyebrow slightly, the corners of his lips turning upwards.

Cuddy smiled a bit in response, still loving the usual flirtatious give and take of their professional relationship.

"ER already ruled those two out, along with staph, mono and meningitis," Cuddy revealed.

House smirked, taking the file from Cuddy's hand.

"Mommy knows what gets me off," House assured Cate.

Cuddy's eyes almost bugged out of her head at House's use of the word "_mommy_."

Only a few people knew that she was pregnant, and she didn't need it getting around the entire hospital.

Cate was equally surprised at House's choice of words.

"Gotta go," House said briskly as he got up and left Cate and his untouched cup of coffee at the table.

As House began to make his way to the exit of the cafeteria, Cuddy took another look at the woman at the table.

"_I KNOW HER_," Cuddy said to herself, trying to jog her memory as she began to follow House out of the cafeteria.

"**SEE YA LATER, WILSON!!**" House suddenly called out on the top of his lungs, without bothering to turn around.

Wilson lowered the paper down with a defeated sigh, realizing that House had known he was there all along.

And just as Wilson realized that, a new look of epiphany crossed his face.

House knew that he was there.

Which meant that the entire conversation he had just had with Cate was purely for Wilson's benefit. 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

At around noon, Sophie walked out of the lecture hall with her messenger bag slung across her body, having just finished her first session of Grand Rounds.

She glanced at her watch, thinking that she had at least a half hour before Chase would be meeting her in the cafeteria for lunch.

After stopping at the lobby newsstand and buying a copy of _The New York Times_, she decided to go out into the courtyard to kill some time until Chase was free.

Wearing her prescription sunglasses, she found an empty table and headed right for the "Dining and Wine" section of the paper. She loved reading the reviews of Manhattan's most posh and trendiest restaurants.

And now that she and Chase were living together, she decided that it would be a good idea to expand her cooking skills. That way, Chase could come home to a hot meal every night instead of take out.

As she read over a recipe for "_Summer Vegetables in Saffron Broth With Ricotta and Toasted Baguette_," she played with her Tiffany key charm around her neck between her thumb and index finger, wondering if they had any saffron in the house.

And that's when she heard a slightly familiar voice.

"Beautiful day," the voice said.

Sophie looked up, recognizing the young, handsome man in front of her immediately. He was wearing a set of light blue scrubs, sneakers, and a disarming smile on his face that formed a dimple in his left cheek.

It was the guy from the coffee shop who didn't know shit about poker and who had said good morning to Chase.

"Sure is," Sophie replied.

"I don't know if you remember me. You were in front of me on line at the coffee shop this morning—" the young man began.

"I remember you. Gut shot straight," Sophie replied.

His smile widened. "Danny, actually," he said, extending his hand.

"Sophie. It's nice to meet you, Danny," she said, shaking his hand in return.

Taking her handshake as an invitation to sit down, Danny pulled out a seat at the table and made himself comfortable.

"So how long have you been a professional poker player, Sophie?" he said in his most charming fashion.

"Since I was sixteen," Sophie replied without missing a beat.

Danny was astonished.

"… You… _really play professionally_?" he asked, completely thrown off his game.

"Oh, so that was just a lame pick up line? I'm disappointed," Sophie replied with a jaunty smile.

Danny laughed. "Sorry. I need new material," he said in a sheepish manner.

She laughed along with him. "Yeah, I started rounding in high school, continued in college."

"You must be really good to know the odds of a hand that quickly," he said to her.

"Well, I don't play so much any more," she said with a shrug.

"Feel like giving me some pointers? I can sure use 'em," he said with a friendly yet perfectly self- deprecating chuckle.

"_SMOOTH, DANNY_," Sophie thought to herself.

Her face changing to the serene expression she always used at the tables.

"It'll cost ya," she said plainly.

Danny was visibly taken aback. "I… uh…" he stammered.

Sophie pressed her lips together for a second, letting him sweat it out.

"I'm kidding," she finally said, rolling her eyes.

Danny laughed in relief. "I really thought you were serious," he admitted.

"Good thing you weren't at the table with me," she quipped.

Danny clicked his tongue as he realized the point she was trying to make.

"That was a '_poker face_,' right?" he asked, his hazel eyes sparkling as he smiled.

"That's right," she said. "So are you a resident here?"

"I'm almost done with my first year of residency. You?"

"Fourth year student. I transferred from Boston," she replied.

Danny turned down his bottom lip. "Not many med students transfer. Did you not like Boston?" he asked.

"No, I liked it fine," she replied, not elaborating on her answer.

Just as Danny was about to press her further, Chase limped up to where Sophie and Danny were sitting, using his rosewood cane as support. He was in a new set of light yellow scrubs and his sneakers. Sophie's entire face lit up upon seeing him.

"Hey," Chase said to her, not looking in Danny's direction as he leaned over and gave her an open mouthed kiss, his tongue tasting hers in a lingering manner.

Sophie was a little shocked that he had kissed her in such an intimate manner in front of Danny, but she felt her knees go weak at the kiss, nonetheless.

"…Hi! You're done early?" she asked as their lips finally parted, catching her breath a bit.

Danny pressed his lips together tightly and tilted his head down, leaning back on the chair a bit, realizing that he had just been cock- blocked by the older doctor.

"Yep. Ready for lunch?" Chase asked her, his aquamarine eyes flitting over to Danny for a second.

"Yes," Sophie said happily as she stood up and grabbed her messenger bag from the table.

"Nice chatting with you," she said to Danny as Chase took her hand in his.

"You too," Danny replied politely.

Danny watched Chase put his arm possessively around Sophie's shoulder as the two of them walked away, realizing the reason she had left Boston.

"_TOO BAD_," he thought to himself. "_HOT AND SMART_."

Danny's eyes then fell on Chase's cane and his limp.

And he smirked. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Around ten minutes later, Chase and Sophie were in the hospital cafeteria having lunch. She was telling Chase in great detail about the patient she had studied that morning in Grand Rounds.

But Chase was only half listening.

"So… you made a new friend?" Chase asked as casually as he could.  

Sophie chuckled. "You mean Danny?" she clarified.

"Ah, is _that_ his name," Chase said with a slight smirk.

"Yes, when people introduce themselves, they usually tell people their name," Sophie said with a grin.

"And you could have said hello to him if your tongue hadn't been down my throat at the time," she added.

"Oh so you don't like how I kiss you?" he joked coyly.

Sophie swatted his arm playfully. "Yeah, it's _awful_," her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Chase laughed, but kept his gaze on her, waiting for her to explain why she was talking to Danny in the first place.

"He just wanted some poker tips," Sophie explained, knowing exactly what was behind his look.

Chase snorted. "Women are so stupid," he stated.

Sophie arched her eyebrow. "This should be good."

"Poker was his opening. He's interested in you," Chase explained as if he was talking to a child.

"Don't tell me you're jealous," Sophie said, tilting her head in amusement.

"Would you rather me _NOT_ be jealous?" Chase asked lightly.

"No, I _LIKE_ that you're jealous," Sophie replied, scooting her chair closer to him.

"But you have nothing to worry about," she said softly, gazing into his eyes.

"Why's that?" he asked, matching her soft tone.

"Because I'm hopelessly in love with you," she whispered, caressing his smooth face.

For a moment, as he got lost in her deep brown eyes, Chase had a fleeting thought that Danny the Intern didn't have chronic pain, didn't depend on pain pills and that he didn't need a cane to walk.

But he quickly brushed the thought away.

"Guess I can't blame other guys for checking out my girl," he said with a shrug.

"Why's that?" she asked.

"Because she's gorgeous," Chase said in a husky tone that made Sophie's heart flutter in her chest.

"…Can I cook for you tonight?" she asked him in an intimate tone.

"I found a great recipe in the Times. We can pick up a bottle of wine on the way home," she suggested.

Chase nodded. "I'd love that," he said.

She licked her lips. "And… Maybe we can test out our jacuzzi tub for dessert," she added.

"Yummy," he whispered. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

A little while later, Wilson was in the Clinic, signing off on a patient's chart when House limped up to him.

"Great disguise, Mr. Phelps. Next time, go for a baseball cap and dark glasses," House snarked.

Wilson furrowed his brow. "Mr. Phelps…" he mused. "From '_Mission Impossible_?'" he finally asked.

"I love it when I don't have to explain pop cultural references," House muttered, taking a red lollipop out of the jar at the nurse's station.

"You knew I was there," Wilson stated.

"… Yeah, that was my point—" House began.

"If you knew I was there, that means that you didn't act the way you would have with Cate if you _DIDN'T_ know I was there," Wilson explained.

"Right. If you weren't there, I would have drank my coffee with a straw," House retorted.

"What if Cuddy hadn't shown up when she did?" Wilson asked flatly.

At that moment, House suddenly became fascinated with the pile of waiting charts in front of him.

"Would you have flirted with her? Told her that you've been keeping her note in your pocket all weekend?" Wilson pressed.

"What do you want from me?" House demanded.  

"_Chase is WRONG, House_," Wilson said bluntly.

House inhaled deeply, still avoiding Wilson's stare.

"You've got a good thing going with Cuddy. Don't screw it up," Wilson told him before walking into an exam room.

TBC…


	6. Chapter 6

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS! I RESPONDED TO ALL OF THEM.**

**AND HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER!**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

****************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 6: Please read and comment.**

"What if Cuddy hadn't shown up when she did?" Wilson asked flatly.

At that moment, House suddenly became fascinated with the pile of waiting charts in front of him.

"Would you have flirted with her? Told her that you've been keeping her note in your pocket all weekend?" Wilson pressed.

"What do you want from me?" House demanded.  

"_Chase is WRONG, House_," Wilson said bluntly.

House inhaled deeply, still avoiding Wilson's stare.

"You've got a good thing going with Cuddy," Wilson stated, taking a pause as he took a patient's chart off the pile.

"Don't screw it up," Wilson told him.

House followed Wilson with his eyes as he left him alone at the charge nurse's desk and entered an exam room.

As he tore the wrapper off the lollipop he was holding, he turned his attention towards the glass partition between the Clinic and Cuddy's office.

Cuddy was sitting at her desk, talking on the phone.

For a brief moment, he contemplated going into her office.

But then he turned around and left.

But not before Cuddy noticed him as he walked out the door. 

----------------------------------------------------------------- 

A few moments later, Wilson was in Exam Room 1, examining a young woman complaining of a sore throat, when he heard a knock at the door.

"With a patient!" Wilson called back at the door without turning around.

As the door opened, Wilson rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"House, I know you're having a crisis, but—" he began wearily.

"You got a minute?" a familiar female alto voice interrupted him.

Wilson turned around, surprised to see Cuddy standing in the doorway.

"…Um, sure," Wilson said, furrowing his brow.

Cuddy nodded. Wilson followed her out of the exam room, closing the door behind him.

"What's up?" he asked her, noticing that Cuddy seemed unsettled. She took a breath to center herself.

"Who is she?" Cuddy asked, her eyes filled with hurt.

Wilson let out a breath and slumped his shoulders, taking a pause before answering her question. 

---------------------------------------------------------- 

Later that day, House was sitting at the conference table, rubbing his the scruff on his chin absentmindedly, staring at the glass table top as Foreman and Thirteen argued back and forth about the test results on their patient.

"Maybe it's Swine Flu," Thirteen suggested.

"ER already ruled out Influenza A," Foreman reminded her.

"There's been tons of cases all over the Tri- State area of people coming in for flu tests and showing up negative, only to come back three days later with a whopping positive," Thirteen argued.

"So are you saying that we should send the patient home, wait three days and then tell him to come back when he's that much sicker?" Foreman countered in annoyance.

"Enough," House said quietly, still stroking his face, staring at the table top.

Forman and Thirteen immediately stopped bickering, truly surprised at House's soft demeanor.

"Start him on Interferon. If it is Swine Flu or any other virus, the Interferon should work," House stated in a low tone.

"Interferon isn't an approved treatment for Swine Flu," Thirteen pointed out.

At this House, looked up.

"You sound just like him," House said to her, jutting his chin out at Foreman. "You wearing each other's underwear, too?" he muttered.

Foreman and Thirteen exchanged curious glances, not moving from their seats.

"Do I need to print up invites? _Go_," he said more forcefully.

Foreman rolled his eyes and Thirteen pursed her lips, finally getting up from the conference table, leaving House in the room by himself.

As they were leaving through the glass door, Cuddy entered, passing them on the way in. She didn't bother to acknowledge them as she entered the conference room, her focus on House. House glanced at her before looking back down at the tabletop.

"…How's your patient?" Cuddy asked him.

"Sick," he replied, meeting her eyes, not failing to notice the injured look in them.

Cuddy stared at him for a moment before nodding her head. She turned around to leave.

"Her name is Cate Milton," House blurted out.

Cuddy stopped and turned back around to face him, her brow furrowed in bewilderment.

"Your patient... is a _MAN_," she reminded him.

"The woman I was sitting with in the cafeteria. Her name is Cate Milton—" House began.

"I know who she is," Cuddy said simply.

House tilted his head ever so slightly.

"…You _do_?" he managed to ask, his heart thumping in his ears.

She's a psychiatrist and an adjunct professor here. She was a patient of yours last year. You treated her through a webcam from the South Pole," Cuddy stated.

"_DAMN WILSON AND HIS BIG MOUTH_," he thought to himself.

But he knew that he couldn't keep his feelings about Cate from Cuddy much longer.

House leaned over in his chair sticking his hand into the pocket of his jeans, about to pull out Cate's note when Cuddy interrupted him again.

"What I _DON'T_ know is why you felt the need to tell her that I'm _PREGNANT_," Cuddy added angrily.

House's hand stopped abruptly in his pocket.

He stared at her with narrowed brows, not having any idea what she was talking about.

"I didn't tell her that you were pregnant," House said.

"_YOU CALLED ME 'MOMMY!!_'" Cuddy exclaimed in agitation.

In that moment, as Cuddy's eyes flared at him, furiously, House was certain of one thing:

Wilson didn't sell him out.

House tsked. "I've been calling you mommy for years," he scoffed.

"Yeah. To your _TEAM_ or _WILSON_ as a sick joke. Not to a faculty member!!" she shot back.

"What's the difference? Nobody takes anything that I say seriously," he told her.

"Don't you get it?! If…" Cuddy said, suddenly trailing off.

"...If what?" House asked, more confused than ever.

Cuddy took a breath to calm herself down. Her eyes began to well up with tears.

"If I miscarry…" she began, trying to control the quivering of her lower lip.

"…The last thing I want is for this entire hospital to touch my shoulder in sympathy and give me their unsolicited words of wisdom," she continued, her voice cracking.

"Why do you think you're going to miscarry?" House said, his voice softer.

Cuddy's lip was now visibly shaking. Her face scrunched up as she started to cry.

"… Because I always miscarry…" she said through her tears.

Thinking that this probably wasn't the best time to point out to her that she was right on schedule for mood swings at this stage in the pregnancy, House got up from his chair, limped the few steps over to her and wrapped his arms around her petite frame, pulling her closer.

She continued to sob into his chest as he exhaled, holding her tighter.

"How long have you been feeling like this?" House asked her.

"Since this morning," she replied as she sniffed.

For a moment, House froze, thinking that this morning, she had seen him sitting with Cate.

"What happened this morning?" he asked her carefully.

"I read ahead in the book to the section on miscarriage," she muttered against his chest.

House exhaled in immense relief. "Well that was stupid," he told her.

"No wonder why you never got that job as a copywriter for Hallmark," she snarked, still leaning against him.

House chuckled, causing her to laugh a bit as well. He took her hand and led her through the glass doors into his private office. He grabbed the box of tissues off his desk and sat down on the couch with her, facing her, his beautiful cerulean eyes kinder than usual.

"You can't think like that," he told her gently, offering her the box of tissues.

Cuddy nodded, taking two tissues and wiped her nose.

"It's not good for you… and it's not good for the baby," he continued.

"I know," she said.

House nodded, gazing at her as she continued to dab her eyes so as not to smear her makeup.

"I keep thinking about Naomi Randolph and Emma Sloan," she continued, her voice still rough around the edges from crying.

"Are they new authors in Oprah's Book Club?" House asked.

"They're former patients of yours," she reminded him.

House jogged his memory, trying to match faces to the names, but he was unable to do so.  

"Naomi died while having a C- section and Emma's baby almost killed her," Cuddy explained sadly, knowing that he had no recollection of the two women.

House lifted his head a bit as bits and pieces of their cases came back to him.

"What do they have to do with you?" House asked.

"What if something happens like that to me?" she asked him meekly.

House only paused for a moment, truly surprised at Cuddy's sudden fear and insecurity. She had wanted to be pregnant for so long.

And now that she was, she was petrified.

"Ok. From now on, you're not allowed to read alarmist pregnancy books or patient files," House told her firmly.

Cuddy made a noise somewhere between a sigh and a disgusted laugh as she lolled back against the couch.

"There's no reason why you can't have a normal, healthy, boring pregnancy," House said.

"I miscarried three times," she reminded him.

"You miscarried _ONCE_. The first two implantations never took," he countered.

"…I'm scared."

"I know. But you don't have to be."

Drinking in his comforting tone, Cuddy looked at him.

"Why not?" she asked.

"Because you're not alone this time," he said simply.

A tiny, sad smile formed on Cuddy's lips as his uncharacteristic reassurance washed over her. House leaned over and kissed her lightly, stroking her cheek with his thumb.

"According to the book, I'm right on schedule for mood swings and fears," she mumbled.

"Less reading. More TV," he told her with a small smirk.

Cuddy laughed at that, loving the way the edges of his eyes crinkled up as he smiled at her.

"I should go wash my face," she told him.

House nodded as she got up off his couch.

As he watched her leave through the glass doors and head down the hallway, he took Cate's note out of his pocket.

He rubbed his fingers against it for a moment before crumpling it up and tossing it in a nearby trashcan.

He then grabbed his cane and headed out to the balcony that he and Wilson shared, his extremely curious mind already racing about Wilson's motives for staying quiet. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

At the same time, Sophie was talking to her new resident supervisor, Dr. Jacob, in the hallway when she saw Danny walking towards her.

Her eyes flitted over to him for a brief second as Dr. Jacob continued to explain what her clinical requirements would be for her this semester.

Danny waited patiently at a polite distance as they continued their conversation.

"Ok, Sophie. If you have any more questions, you know where my office is," Dr. Jacob said.

"Yes I do. Thank you very much, Dr, Jacob" Sophie replied to him with a friendly smile.

Dr. Jacob nodded as he walked away. Danny immediately took that as his cue to move in.

"You stalking me?" she teased as he approached her.

Danny laughed. "I'm too lazy to stalk people in real life. That's what the internet is for." His trademark dimple formed on his cheek as he flashed her a charming smile.

Sophie smiled, a small laugh escaping her lips.

"You like Dr. Jacob?" Danny asked.

"He's a lot nicer than my Chief Resident back in Boston," Sophie replied, remembering that she almost failed Grand Rounds because she wanted to take a few days off to be with Chase for his ankle surgery.

Danny nodded. "So how long have you and Dr. Chase been an item?" he asked, changing the subject.

Sophie bristled at his choice of words to describe their relationship. She had always hated that phrase, as it reminded her of a tabloid celebrity couple.

"We've been together for quite a while, actually," she replied, refusing to elaborate.

"Think he'd mind if I invited you to a poker game?" Danny asked without missing a beat.

Sophie was visibly caught off guard.

"… Excuse me?" she managed to ask.

"My friends and I have a regular game on Thursday nights. Usually Twenty- Forty Stud or Omaha," he replied.

"That's trendy," she commented.

Danny laughed. "Yeah, I know. My friends are too wimpy to try Texas Hold 'Em."

"They don't know what they're missing. Once you learn, you'll never go back to any other game," she said.

"Well… maybe you could show us how to play?" he suggested casually.

Sophie exhaled, remembering that Chase had told her that Danny was interested in her and was using poker as an excuse to get close to her.

And she had been around the block long enough to spot a hustle a mile away.

More importantly, she had given up poker, having boasted to her old hustling parter and ex boyfriend, Joey Smythe, that she hadn't been at a table in months.

"Dr. Chase is welcome, too, of course," Danny added quickly, sensing her hesitation.

Just then, Chase rounded the corner of the hallway, limping on his cane. Immediately, he spotted Sophie talking to Danny.

Sophie spotted Chase as well. As a reflex, she backed up a bit from Danny.

"Can I get back to you?" she asked Danny, her eyes still on Chase.

She could tell, even from a few feet away from her, that he wasn't happy.

"Sure," Danny replied with a smile.

He then turned to leave, passing Chase as he walked in the opposite direction down the hallway, nodding a greeting to him as he did.

Chase didn't bother to acknowledge his nod as he headed over to Sophie.

Once he reached her, Sophie smiled at him. "Hi sweetheart," she said, rubbing his chest over his scrubs gently. 

"Is this guy stalking you or something?" Chase asked lightly, arching his eyebrow.

"No," Sophie said dismissively as she placed both her hands on his cheeks and kissed him.

Chase accepted her kiss. But as she pulled back, she saw that he was waiting for an explanation.

She knew what she was about to ask him was wrong on so many levels.

But she just couldn't help herself.

"…Are we busy on Thursday night?" she asked him with a sweet smile.

TBC…


	7. Chapter 7

**WHEW!!**

**I FINALLY FINISHED THIS CHAPTER!**

**I'M SO SORRY FOR POSTING SO LATE. **

**THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING AND FOR YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS!! IT MEANS SO VERY MUCH TO ME!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 7: Please read and comment.**

Is this guy stalking you or something?" Chase asked lightly, arching his eyebrow.

"No," Sophie said dismissively as she placed both her hands on his cheeks and kissed him.

Chase accepted her kiss. But as she pulled back, she saw that he was waiting for an explanation.

She knew what she was about to ask him was wrong on so many levels.

But she just couldn't help herself.

"…Are we busy on Thursday night?" she asked him with a sweet smile.

"I don't think so. Why?"

Sophie paused, wondering for a moment if she was making a huge mistake by even bringing it up.

"… Danny invited us… to his Thursday night poker game."

Chase narrowed his brow.

"… And… why would he do that?" he asked with an air of suspicion.

"He… wants me to teach him and his friends Texas Hold 'Em," she replied with an innocent shrug.

Chase let out a disgusted laugh.

"Really," he stated. "And what did you tell him?"

"I said I'd get back to him," she replied softly.

Chase raked his fingers through his hair and nodded as he tightened his jaw. He kept his eyes on her, stroking the thin layer of blond scruff on his chin his chin once.

Sophie felt a wave of uneasiness through her at the way his eyes seemed to be boring through her.

He then nodded again.

"Have a good time," he told her flatly.

As Chase made an attempt to walk past her, she grabbed onto his upper arm.

"He invited _BOTH_ of us. I'm not going without you," she insisted.

"Why? You want me to _WATCH_ you flirt back with him while he compliments you skills and leers at your breasts so you can clean him out? Not interested," Chase shot back.

Sophie flinched at his words.

They stung her like a slap in the face.

He then shrugged her hand off her his arm.

"I have to work late. I won't be home for dinner," he muttered, limping away from her and leaving her alone in the hallway. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

From his vantage point on the balcony, House could see Wilson in his office through the glass sliding doors, talking with a female patient.

After climbing over the wall that divided his balcony from Wilson's with grace and ease, he picked up some loose pebbles off the ground and tossed them at the glass sliding doors.

Wilson snuck a furtive glance at House as his patient continued to tell him how she was doing on the meds he had recently prescribed her.

In that once glance, Wilson saw House swiftly jerk his head, beckoning for Wilson to come out to the balcony to join him.

Wilson shot him a pointed glare as if to say _"not now, you jackass,"_ and turned his attention back to his patient.

This only resulted in House picking up even more pebbles off the ground. He pelted them at the glass doors a bit harder, this time startling Wilson's patient. She jumped a bit in her seat and sharply turned around.

House stared at the two of them impatiently, which only made Wilson sigh apologetically.

"I'm sorry. If I don't pay attention to him, he'll just throw something heavier," Wilson said to her.

After politely excusing himself, Wilson stepped out of his office and joined House on the balcony, closing the sliding glass door behind him.

"Can this wait?" Wilson said in irritation.

"You didn't tell Cuddy anything," House stated.

Wilson realized that House's statement was more of an accusation than anything else.

Wilson exhaled through his nose.

"…No, I didn't," he said.

"Why not?" House asked.

"She asked me who Cate was. I told her," Wilson replied simply.

House nodded once. "Huh," he said, his mind dicing apart what Wilson had just told him.

"And it doesn't _MATTER_ what I told her. It matters what _YOU_ told her," Wilson reminded him.

"You're right," House said.

Wilson's eyes widened tremendously. _"I AM??"_

"The '_WHAT_' doesn't matter. The '_WHY_' matters," House said.

"Oh god," Wilson moaned, rubbing his forehead in aggravation.

"What matters is WHY you chose to leave out the sordid details when you told Cuddy about Cate—" House continued in his usual know- it- all fashion.

"_Are_ there sordid details to leave out since I saw you two in the cafeteria this morning?" Wilson inquired suddenly.

House stopped in mid sentence, actually caught off guard by Wilson's question.

"… No, but—" he began.

"As far as I'm concerned, there's nothing to tell. She sent you a note telling you she wanted to catch up with you, you met her for coffee, and that was _IT_," Wilson asserted.

Now House was even more intrigued.

"Are you trying to protect _ME_ or _HER_?" House asked.

"Does it matter? You'd find fault with either answer," Wilson shot back.

"No I wouldn't," House said with a grimace.

"Yes you would. If I said I was trying to protect _YOU_, you'd say something like: _'Wow. You really took my 'bros before hos' comment seriously? You're an idiot,'"_ Wilson said, trying to do his best imitation of House.

House couldn't help but smile a little.

"And if I said I was trying to protect _HER_, you'd say: '_Cuddy's not gonna be heartbroken just because some woman I treated a year ago has the hots for me! You're an idiot!'_" Wilson exclaimed.

"You think Cate has the hots for me? Cool," House said, attempting to deflect.

At this, Wilson threw up his hands a bit in disgust and turned around to leave House on the balcony by himself.

As he turned to leave, House knew that if he wanted anything meaningful out of their conversation, he'd have to come clean to his friend.

"She's afraid to miscarry," House mumbled, tilting his head down a bit.

Wilson stopped in his tracks and turned around. His annoyed expression disappeared.

"… That's… understandable. With her medical history—" Wilson said.

"She also thinks she's going to die giving birth," House continued.

Wilson raised his eyebrows. "She really said that?" he asked.

House shrugged. "She was reading some of my past case files," he muttered.

Wilson nodded, finally understanding the whole picture.

"She's scared," Wilson said.

House nodded a bit, not saying anything, still staring at the ground.

"And so are _YOU_," Wilson added.

At this, House lifted his eyes a bit.

And that's when realization hit Wilson like a truck.

"Which is why _YOU_ think you have feelings for _Cate_!" Wilson announced.

"Ok. That makes absolutely NO sense," House said, grimacing.

"It makes _PERFECT_ sense," Wilson said confidently, his face full of epiphany.

House peeked behind Wilson and saw his patient was still waiting for him.

"You sure you got time for this? She doesn't look so hot," House snarked.

"Up until recently, you and Cuddy have just been _DATING_. You didn't make any long term plans, you didn't propose to her—" Wilson said, getting more excited as he spoke that he actually figured this out.

"I didn't want to cramp your style. You should thank me," House said.

"But now that she's actually _PREGNANT_ and you moved in with her…" Wilson continued.

"_It's REAL_," Wilson said, as if he had just discovered the mystery of the universe.

House was about to dismiss Wilson's theory and call him an idiot.

But then he stopped himself.

Because it actually made sense.

"And _THAT'S_ what scares the hell out of you," Wilson said, taking a pause.

Because if something _DID_ happen to Cuddy or the baby, it would destroy you forever," Wilson finally finished.

"So you're saying that Cate is a _DISTRACTION_ so I don't have to deal with the realities of life?" House clarified.

"Yeah. Because reality _SUCKS_ most of the time," Wilson replied.

"Remind me again why I keep coming to you for advice," House said.

"Beats me," Wilson said with a shrug of his shoulder.

House's lips turned up at the corners once again, knowing exactly why he kept coming to Wilson for advice.

But of course, he'd never admit that.

"See ya later," House said, as he turned to go back to his office.

"You know, one of these days, I should really start charging you by the hour for these little therapy sessions of ours," Wilson said offhandedly as he turned back to his office.

In mid stride, House stopped.

He tilted his head a bit as an idea came to him.

He went back into his office with a smirk on his face. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  

Around twenty minutes later, House opened the door to Cate Milton's office without knocking.

Cate looked up from her paperwork on her desk, completely surprised to see him.

"… Can I… help you with something?" she managed to ask.

"Wilson says that I'm only interested in you because I'm afraid to make a real commitment to Cuddy," House stated.

For a moment, Cate went blank.

"…You… wanna run that by me again?" she finally said.

"I figured it would be a good idea to explore that theory, being that you're a psychiatrist. Shrinks eat this kinda crap up with a spoon," House said.

Cate couldn't help but laugh a bit.

"And you thought that _I'D_ be the one to help you explore this?" she clarified, still not believing they were actually having this conversation.

"Makes sense. You're the one who's holding me back from enjoying my life," House replied.

Cate knew that she should have been incredibly hurt by this remark.

But she found that she was only amused.

And she also knew that House had no interest in how this was affecting her.

And part of her was actually intrigued by House's theory.

"You don't see an inherent conflict of interest here?" she asked him.

"I don't believe in conflict of interest," House replied.

"That's no surprise," she muttered.

House then lay down on the cream colored leather couch that was against the wall in her office.

"And I'm assuming that you have more respect for confidentiality than I do," House continued.

"I'm sensing I do…" she said.

House folded his arms behind his head and crossing his ankles, his entire body stretched out on the couch.

"Great. Then let the healing begin," House said. 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Chase came home well after ten that night.

Thoroughly exhausted, incredibly hungry, and his ankle starting to throb, he flung his messenger bag on the couch and headed for the kitchen.

Sophie had left one light on for him. He limped to the refrigerator to grab the container of orange juice so he would have something to wash down his last dose of Ultram for the day.

On the fridge was a post it:

**"DINNER'S IN THE FRIDGE.**

**HEAT IT UP IF YOU WANT.**

**-S"**

Chase exhaled as a wave of guilt washed over him, remembering what he had said to Sophie earlier that day.

He opened up the fridge and found a plate covered with tinfoil on the middle shelf. He peeled back the foil. Underneath the foil was chicken parmigiana and a generous helping of mashed potatoes.

His favorite.

Which only made him feel worse.

Chase took the tinfoil off the plate, placed the plate in the microwave and swallowed his pill as he waited for the meal she had made him to heat up.

He knew that Sophie could hear the microwave from the upper level of their condo.

But since she wasn't coming down the stairs, he figured that either she was ignoring him or she was asleep.

After a few minutes, Chase took the plate out of the microwave, grabbed a fork and knife and began to eat his dinner.

As his taste buds and his stomach thoroughly enjoyed every bite, his heart only ached more.

He hadn't even turned around to see Sophie's reaction to what he had said to her in the hallway.

And he felt awful about it.

Only halfway through his dinner, Chase grabbed the plate and the silverware and decided to finish the rest in their bedroom.

And then he realized how hard it was to hold a plate and silverware and walk up a flight of steps with only one good ankle.

As he took one step at a time, the pain throbbed through his ankle up his leg. But he ignored it, knowing it was only a matter of time before his meds kicked in.

After a few moments, he finally reached their bedroom.

Sophie was sitting up on their bed, her legs underneath the covers, working on her laptop. She was wearing a cotton lacy camisole and her glasses. Her hair was swept up off her neck with a clip.

Chase entered the room slowly, carefully putting the plate down on the nightstand. He tentatively sat down on the bed next to her.

Sophie didn't take her eyes off her laptop.

"…You didn't have to make me dinner," Chase began softly.

"I'm assuming that you didn't eat at the hospital," she said simply, still refusing to look in his direction.

"You didn't try the recipe you found in the Times?" he asked, keeping the soft tone in his voice.

"I decided it wasn't worth the effort," she said curtly with a shrug.

Chase winced a bit at her comment, which stung.

But he knew he deserved it.

"… I'm sorry—" he said feebly.

"You should be. You called me a _whore_," she snapped.

Chase's mouth gaped open, his eyes widening.

Sophie still wouldn't look at him.

Chase shook his head vigorously. "I would _NEVER_ say that about you. I didn't mean—"

"Then how did you mean it?" she demanded, turning her head sharply, finally facing him. Her eyes were blazing with anger and hurt.

"…Is that how you see me?" she asked, her voice a little softer, the hurt coming through.

"Of course it isn't," he said. "I'm just…"

Sophie took a breath and let it out, waiting for him to finish his thought. Chase lowered his eyes to the blanket, afraid to admit the truth to her.  

"…I'm jealous," he whispered.

Sophie stared at him, dumbfounded.

"Do you _HONESTLY_ think that I'm gonna run away with this guy or something? If I thought that _you_ were going to run away with every single woman you looked at in the hospital—" she said.

"_I CAN'T RUN ANYWHERE_," Chase said, slowly and evenly, his voice cracking a bit.

Sophie's breath caught in her throat. Her chest tightened.

"… That's what you're jealous of?" she asked, barely above a whisper.

He couldn't look her in the eye.

"That… that he doesn't need a cane?" she asked.

Chase's mouth turned down.

She turned her entire body to face him, placing her hands on both of his cheeks. She could see that his eyes were glistening with tears that he stubbornly refused to let go.

"Listen to me," she said softly as she tried to make him look at her.

Chase finally met her eyes with his.

"He's not you," she told him.

Chase shook his head, attempting to look away from her.

But she wouldn't let him.

"_NOBODY_ is," she said with the utmost sincerity.

She kissed him gently, delicately, brushing her lips against his, feeling her cheeks become moist with his tears.

TBC…


	8. Chapter 8

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS FOR BEING SO PATIENT!**

**AND THANK YOU FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS!  
**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS ON THIS THREAD AND ENJOY!! :-)   
**

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**CHAPTER 8: Please read and comment.**

"_I CAN'T RUN ANYWHERE_," Chase said, slowly and evenly, his voice cracking a bit.

Sophie's breath caught in her throat. Her chest tightened.

"… That's what you're jealous of?" she asked, barely above a whisper.

He couldn't look her in the eye.

"That… that he doesn't need a _cane_?" she asked.

Chase's mouth turned down.

She turned her entire body to face him, placing her hands on both of his cheeks. She could see that his eyes were glistening with tears that he stubbornly refused to let go.

"Listen to me," she said softly as she tried to make him look at her.

Chase finally met her eyes with his.

"He's not you," she told him.

Chase shook his head, attempting to look away from her.

But she wouldn't let him.

"_NOBODY_ is," she said with the utmost sincerity.

She kissed him gently, delicately, brushing her lips against his, feeling her cheeks become moist with his tears.

As Sophie threaded her fingers through the back of his hair, Chase backed up slightly and brusquely wiped away the wetness on his face with his fingertips.

"Shit," he muttered, quickly wiping the bottom of his nose with his finger as he sniffed, trying to compose himself.

Sophie smiled slightly at his embarrassment. She caressed his cheek with the palm of her hand to make him look at her.

"Hey," she said softly. "You don't have to embarrassed to cry in front of me."

Chase exhaled. "There's no reason for me to be crying."

"You don't think House cried every once in a while after his surgery?" Sophie asked him.

"Honestly, I don't even know if the man has tear ducts," he replied wearily.

Sophie chuckled, pulling him closer to her. Chase wrapped his arms around her, nestling into her neck, letting her scent and her love envelop him, a forlorn expression forming on his face.

"… I'm so sorry about what I said—" he began, his face still against her skin.

"I know," she replied, caressing the back of his neck.

He held her tighter, feeling her heartbeat against him.

"Feel like taking a bath?" she asked him.

 ------------------------------------------------------------------ 

A short time later, Chase and Sophie were naked in their large Jacuzzi bath together in their recently redone master bathroom.

Sophie's back was up against the far end of the tub, her legs on either side of Chase. Chase back was pressed against Sophie's breasts. He lolled his head back against her and closed his eyes in sheer bliss as she gently washed his chest, collarbone and shoulders with a white mesh bath sponge and some Dove body wash.

The hot, relaxing steam rose from the tub as the Jacuzzi jets hummed softly, causing decadent bubbles to form around their bodies in the water.

"How's that feel?" she asked in a soothing voice, the sponge and her hands caressing his skin.

"So nice," he whispered happily.

She kissed his temple, leaving her lips there for a moment. He rubbed the outside of her thigh lovingly in response.

"Good, baby," she told him.

As Sophie continued to wash him, Chase opened his eyes slowly.

"You really want to go to this poker game?" he asked her as he focused on some random spot on the bathroom wall.

Sophie looked down at him, surprised at his question.

"…It's… more of a coaching session than an actual game," she said feebly.

Chase turned his head a bit to face her.

"Why you do think you're an addict?" he asked.

"I know I'm an addict," she replied simply, placing the mesh bath sponge on the side of the tub.

"I don't see you selling your possessions on eBay for quick cash or getting an advance on your credit card. You don't play in secret. You don't even play poker online," Chase pointed out.

"That's because I'm not a _GAMBLING_ addict," she clarified as she rinsed the soap off his chest.

"Poker is a casino game, the last time I checked," Chase said.

"Gambling is throwing your money away. Poker is a _SKILL_ game," she explained. "I know when to fold the hand."

Chase mused over this for a moment.

"Then if it's not the money… what exactly are you addicted to?" he pressed gently.

Sophie took a breath and let it out, a weak smile forming on her face.

"Knowing that I've even though I might have rags in the hole, I can still outplay everyone else at the table… being able to read people so well… seeing through their tells… watching their confidence disappear when I reveal what I've been holding," Sophie said.

Chase nodded in understanding. "They never see it coming," he stated.

Her smile became more confident. "That's right."

Chase's eyes traced her entire face. He loved how flushed her damp skin was from the bath. He loved how her hair was swept gracefully off her neck.

And he loved how incredibly sexy she looked when she smiled like that.

"So we'll go, then," he said.

Sophie raised her eyebrows, surprised once more. "Are you sure?"

"It's something you want to do…" he began.

He then sat up a bit more in the tub and cupped her face in his hand, stroking her damp, flushed cheek with his thumb.

"And it something that makes you feel good about yourself," he added.

"It really does," she admitted, feeling relieved that Chase wasn't angry or disappointed in her for wanting to play.

"Besides, you'll probably cut that room up in an hour," he said with a shrug.

"Well where's the fun in that?" she said coyly. 

Chase arched his eyebrow and turned his body around all the way to face her.

He then grabbed her low around her hips and pulled her on top of him. She made a sound between a shriek and a giggle as she wrapped her legs around his waist.

Chase could feel his cock growing as she pressed her body against his, her wet, perky breasts flush against his chest.

Sophie gasped with a pouty expression as she felt his arousal between her legs and against his stomach.

"Dr. Chase!" she squealed in a teasing manner. "You naughty boy!" she scolded in a sexy manner.

"Ohh, I'm _VERY_ naughty," he said in a husky voice, thickening his accent for her.

He squeezed her ass underneath the water as he brought his lips closer to her earlobe.

"Maybe I should be punished for being such a naughty boy…" he murmured into her ear, gently sucking and licking on her earlobe.

"Damn," Sophie mumbled.

Chase backed up slightly, confused. "What?"

"House was right. You _DO_ like pain. Now I owe him fifty bucks," she told him.

Chase's jaw dropped. "He TOLD you that?"

Sophie grinned and captured his lips in a passionate kiss, her tongue dancing against his. She moaned into his mouth as he deepened their kiss.

He skated his palms up the sides of her torso until he reached her soft, pink, perky breasts, which were aching for his touch and flushed pink from the water and the steam.

She whimpered in pleasure as he took her nipple in his mouth, his lips claiming it as his own, his tongue tracing her areola and flicking against her erect nipple.

She pressed her hips tighter against him at his ministrations, her core aching for him as well.

He continued to lave her breasts with his tongue while he reached between their bodies, finding the velvety soft and smooth flesh he desired so badly.

As he circled her nub with his fingertips, her whimpers became desperate cries. She reached down and encircled her hand around his hard, smooth shaft.

"Oh _god_…" he gasped at the feeling of her hand on him.

As she began to stroke him, he slipped his fingers inside of her, causing her to buck her hips closer to his. She leaned her head against his shoulder, her shallow heavy breaths matching his as they pleasured each other.

"Oh baby… oh I'm so close…" she cried, the intense tingle enveloping her.

"Me too…" Chase managed to say between breaths and the overwhelming sensation between his legs.

"I want you inside me, baby," she begged.

Chase nodded vigorously, forcing himself to calm down a bit so he could last a little longer.

Sophie lifted herself slightly, tucking her legs underneath her. She helped him as she lowered herself down onto his cock. They moaned together as he filled her up, her tight walls drawing him in.

"I'm _so_ glad you're on the pill," he breathed, grabbing her hips possessively.

Sophie rolled her hips towards him and wrapped her arms around his back as he thrust up inside her. They found a wonderful rhythm together, his lips trailing against her shoulder and collarbone as he glided into her, over and over again.

Their passion reached a delicious peak at her orgasm. She cried out something that Chase couldn't quite make out.

As he exploded forcefully inside her, he realized he didn't care what the hell she'd said.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 The following morning, House limped up to Chase, who was waiting on line in the hospital cafeteria, peering at the selection of bagels that were on display, while leaning on his rosewood cane.

He was wearing a set of light yellow scrubs and a lazy smile on his face, the events of his mind- blowing Jacuzzi sex with Sophie still on his mind.

In his long- term post sex haze, he had no idea that House was standing right next to him.

"How's you leg?" House suddenly asked him, abruptly breaking Chase out of his reverie.

The smile quickly disappeared from Chase's face as House pointedly stared at Chase's leg and his cane.

"Same. How's yours?" he quipped curtly.

"I need you to do an exploratory surgery," House said to him, handing him a patient's file that he seemed to produce out of nowhere.

Chase glanced at the file for a moment before taking it, slipping it under his arm as he chose a sesame seed bagel out of the assortment.

"You could have just said that. You didn't have to pretend to care," Chase told him, placing the bagel on a waiting paper plate on his tray.

"I'm thinking really cool hepatic abscess," House told him, choosing a poppy seed bagel out of the assortment.

He then snagged a nearby paper plate and placed it and the bagel on Chase's tray.

"Then I'll make sure to only take out the _really cool_ one and leave the _nerdy_ ones in there," Chase said dryly.

As they continued to limp along the line, they both noticed two other male doctors staring at them a bit longer than they should, their eyes immediately focusing on each of their limps and canes.

"We thought about getting matching ones on our last date, but he thought people would talk" House said loudly to the two doctors, jutting his chin at Chase.

The two doctors, clearly taken aback by House's statement, walked away from them at a brisk pace.

Chase merely sighed. "I'm not paying for your breakfast," he told him, grabbing a pint- sized container of orange juice.

House grabbed a can of Coke and placed it on Chase's tray.

"Put it on Wilson's tab," House told the cashier, who nodded.

Chase stood in front of the cashier, trying to quickly figure out how he was going to carry the tray in one hand while holding the cane in the other hand without dropping the file he was holding against his side with his elbow.

For a moment, House watched him in amusement as Chase struggled with the task.

He then took the tray out of Chase's hand and held it with ease.

"Practice makes perfect," House told him.

Not finding that reassuring at all, Chase followed him to a nearby table and sat down with him.

As they began to eat, Cuddy strode into the cafeteria. Wearing a black pencil skirt with a slit up the thigh, a red form fitting low cut square neck t- shirt and black stilettos, House noticed that she looked a lot more like the confident administrator than she did yesterday.

"Need you in the Clinic today," she told him.

"For a quickie? Good. The Janitor's closet is _SO_ five years ago. And there's no lock on the door," House drawled.

Chase pursed his lips together as his own memories of him and Cameron in that closet came flooding back to him, especially when House barged in on them.

A wry smile appeared on Cuddy's face. "I'll give you ten minutes to finish your breakfast of champions," she said, jutting her chin at his bagel and Coke.

"Geez, you think once I knocked up the boss that I'd be cut a little slack," House murmured under his breath to Chase.

Cuddy placed her hand on the table and leaned over slightly. House took a not- so subtle peek at her ample breasts, which were now spilling over the neckline of her shirt at this point in her pregnancy.

"Not a chance," she said with a grin.

"If I was declared temporarily insane, would you still make me do Clinic duty?" House asked, now looking up at her face.

"First let me see you find a psychiatrist who would agree to treat you. THEN we'll talk about the Clinic," she said, not missing a beat.

At this, House smiled a bit, knowing that Cuddy had no idea how ironic her statement was.

And Chase noticed his smile.

"Ten minutes," she repeated, turning on her heel and walking away from the table.

Both House and Chase kept their gaze on her ass until she was out of sight.

"What was that?" Chase asked House.

"That was a first trimester ass. I can't _WAIT_ for the second trimester," he replied.

"You _SMILED_," Chase clarified.

At this, House turned back to Chase.

"Contrary to popular belief, I do have the appropriate anatomy to do that," House snarked.

"You smiled when she said '_let me see you find a psychiatrist who would agree to treat you_,'" Chase repeated.

"It was funny," he said with a shrug, suddenly becoming fascinated with his poppy seed bagel.

But Chase knew House all too well to fall for his methods of deflection.

"…Are you… seeing a _psychiatrist_?" Chase asked incredulously.

House looked up at Chase briefly. "No," he said.

"Just do the surgery," he added as he grabbed his bagel and Coke and left the table, leaving Chase at the table alone.

"And tell Sophie thanks for the fifty," House added loudly before leaving the cafeteria. 

----------------------------------------------------------------- 

Later that evening, Chase was limping through the parking lot to his car after a long day in the NICU.

Now that it was summer, Chase inhaled the scent of the mild evening air, thinking that it might be nice to have dinner with Sophie on the deck.

As he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket to call her and ask her if she wanted him to bring home take- out, he saw a very familiar figure limping with a cane towards a motorcycle.

And he wasn't alone.

As he got closer, the lights that illuminated the lot helped him see that House was chatting with a woman with straight brown hair and a slim, yet curvy figure.

A woman that he didn't recognize.

But Chase had an unsettling feeling that he knew who she was.

As the woman gently patted House's arm and said good- night, he nodded in return.

Chase wasn't close enough to see if he was smiling.

He remained in his spot until the woman turned and headed to her own car. As House began to mount his bike, Chase then seized the opportunity.

"Working late?" Chase asked.

House jumped in his seat slightly, having no idea where Chase could have possibly come from in the dark parking lot.

"… Yeah, we were… still tossing theories around—" he stammered.

"I saw her," Chase interrupted bluntly, his eyes boring into House.

House paused for a moment, trying not to break his gaze with Chase.

"…You _CAN'T_ tell Cuddy," House said after a pause.

Chase turned down his lower lip and shrugged.

"… I'm… not even sure what I would tell her if I did," Chase admitted.

"You can't tell Sophie, either. She'll tell Wilson and then—" House began.

"I know. What goes around comes around," Chase interrupted, cutting off House's thought process.

His eyes on the younger man, House felt seemingly satisfied with Chase's ability to keep a secret.

"We were just talking," House mumbled.

"Then why do you want me to stay quiet?" Chase probed.

House exhaled a bit, amazed at how guilty he felt.

Technically, he wasn't doing anything wrong. He had just finished a half- hour session with Cate in her office, avoiding her probing questions for most of the allotted time.

But he still felt guilty.

And for some reason, he still didn't want Cuddy to know about this.

"...I don't know," House admitted.

Chase nodded slowly. He didn't completely understand what was going on in House's head.

But he knew that it took a lot for House to admit that he didn't have a reason for what he was doing with Cate.

"I hope you know what you're doing," was all Chase said before walking away from House and towards his own car.

House watched him leave, an aching feeling of remorse and uncertainty filling his chest.

"So do I," he said quietly to himself.

TBC…


	9. Chapter 9

**HI EVERYONE!**

**WELL, I FINALLY FINISHED THIS CHAPTER. I HAD A BOUT OF WRITERS BLOCK, BUT I THINK I'M OVER IT NOW. :)**

**THANKS FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS!**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS ON THIS ONE AND ENJOY!! :-) **

****************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 9: Please read and comment.**

That night, Cate was in her bedroom, sitting up in her bed.

Her laptop was in front of her and her digital recorder was in her hand, her thumb pressing on the "rewind" button for the fifth time.

Since she had returned home after her session with House that evening, she had been transcribing the audio recording onto a Word documents on her laptop, pressing pause every few minutes to make sure she didn't miss one word.

Now, as the transcript was complete, she leaned back against her bed. She picked up the glass of Merlot from her nightstand that she had poured herself earlier and took a sip, eyeing the text she had typed in front of her.

She pressed "Play" on her hand held digital recorder, deciding to listen to House's voice as she read the text she had typed: 

************************************************** 

**GREGORY HOUSE, MD.**

**SESSION 1**

_H: "Before you ask, I never wanted to have sex with my mother. My father was abusive. He wasn't my biological father. My mother never stopped him. Now he's dead. She's still alive."_

_C: "Ok, so that means I can go ahead and cross all that off my pre- printed Freudian psychosis checklist?"_

_At that point, she had remembered that House had blinked once, suddenly becoming fascinated with the Mondrian print on the wall behind her, while Cate had waited patiently for him to continue._

When he didn't, she had decided that she'd better get things rolling, or House might not open his mouth again.

_C: "So you say that you're interested in me."_

_H: "That's not what I said. I said that Wilson said that I'm only interested in you because I'm afraid to make a real commitment to Cuddy."_

_H: "I also said that you're holding me back from enjoying my life."_

_C: "So should I pack my bags now and start printing copies of my resume?"_

_H: "It would make things easier."_

At this, Cate had remembered taking a pause and looking squarely into House's cerulean blue eyes, almost challenging him to look away.

He hadn't.

_C: "From what I've learned about you, you don't like things to be easy."_

_H: "Medical mysteries, no. Real life is a different story."_

_C: "You didn't come here to ask me to leave Princeton Plainsboro."_

_H: "…No, I didn't."_

Cate heard herself exhale on the recording. She remembered thinking that she was going to have to get House to open up to her in some way if any of this was going to be worthwhile, still unsure about what all of "this" was.

She had decided at that moment that if she was going to get anywhere with House, that she needed to be honest.

_C: "If you really want my help, I'm going to need to know a little more about your relationship with Cuddy."_

At this point in the recording, House had taken a long pause before answering.

Cate could read the torment in his eyes as he no doubt was deciding whether or not to reveal something that was intimately private to her.

_C: "Whatever you say doesn't leave this room."_

Cate smiled a bit at how reassuring her voice had sounded on the recording.

_H: "…She's pregnant."_

_C: "… and… you're the father."_

_H: "Your shocked expression is very reassuring."_

Cate smiled even more at this, taking another sip of Merlot from her wine glass as she continued to listen.

_C: "No, it's just…"_

It was at this point that she had paused, wondering exactly how to phrase her next comment. She didn't want to insult him to the point that he would never come back for another session.

But she knew she had to say something.

And that House would see right through a lie and would hate it if she patronized him.

_C: "You just… don't strike me as the father type."_

Cate winced at hearing her statement, remembering how she could have kicked herself for saying that.

But she also remembered how relieved she had felt when House had tilted his head and how his eyes had sparkling with amusement at her statement.

_H: "You mean, you don't see me changing diapers or pushing a stroller, or heating up a bottle?"_

_C: "…Among other things."_

_H: "People change."_

_C: "If people change, then you're _READY_ to make this commitment to Cuddy. And if you were ready, you wouldn't be here."_

Cate listened to the silence on the recording that seemed to last more than the few moments that it had actually lingered.

_C: "What are you afraid of?"_

_H: "Global warming. Ponzi schemes. The Republican Party. Paparazzi. Cover bands—"_

_C: "Why did you tell me that your father abused you?"_

_H: "I wanted to get the jump on the annoying and intrusive questions about my family life. Going down memory lane sucks ass."_

_C: "Or maybe your subconscious mind wants to explore your father's abuse."_

_H: "My _CONSCIOUS_ mind wants to know why I'm having sexual fantasies about you in the shower while the hottest woman I've ever known is incubating my fetus."_

At this, Cate had taken another pause.

Because for some reason, she knew that House had just lied to her.

_C: "You're not having sexual fantasies about me."_

_H: "…No. I'm not."_

_C: "But when I sent you that note, you dwelled on it."_

_H: "Yes."_

_C: "…Do you agree with Wilson that I'm just a distraction?"_

_H: "Yes."_

_C: "Then if you already know the cause of your… hesitation… then why are you here? Why didn't you just accept Wilson's interpretation of things and be done with it?"_

_C: "Why me, House?"_

In her mind, Cate could see House's cryptic smile as he glanced at the digital clock on her desk.

_H: "Time's up."_

_*****************************************************************_

After re- reading the entire conversation and hearing House's voice as she read, Cate Milton was sure of two things:

House was petrified to be a father.

And House was confiding in her because unlike Cuddy, Wilson, his team, his unborn child, and anyone else in his orbit, she didn't expect one damn thing from him.

Which made her the one and only person that House could trust. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 

When House had arrived home that night after his session with Cate, he toed off his sneakers, kicking them aside. They almost reached the floor mat that Cuddy had placed near the front door for shoes.

House decided that was close enough.

Once he entered the living room, he shrugged off his leather jacket and his backpack, leaving both of them on the couch.

He knew that Cuddy wouldn't be thrilled with the fact that he hadn't hung up his jacket in the closet, but at the moment, he was too lazy and too focused on getting a beer from the fridge to care.

He then went into their kitchen, retrieving a bottle of Becks from the fridge and pried off the cap with a bottle opener he had found in their silverware drawer.

He leaned back onto the kitchen counter, observing how tidy and organized everything was, remembering how Cuddy had taken charge when he had moved all of his stuff into her home.

He smirked as he recalled how she had instructed Chase, Wilson and Foreman exactly where to put everything, insisting that they take off their shoes as well before walking on the carpet.

She had done the same thing to the piano movers who had transported House's Yamaha baby grand piano. The two men had tried to explain to Cuddy that if they had fallen in her home because they were only wearing their socks that she would be liable.

"Trust me. I've got an excellent lawyer," she had said, winking at House.

The piano movers had merely shrugged, taking off their shoes.

House made his way into the bedroom, holding his beer. When he walked in, he saw Cuddy was lying on her left side, propped up on her elbow, reading a hardcover book.

House's eyes raked over her luscious curves. She was wearing a white satin teddy top and matching shorties. The neckline of the teddy was scalloped with lace, her ample breasts peering out of it.

"That top doesn't fit you," House stated, enjoying the view.

Cuddy looked up from her book for only a second before looking back down at the page again.

"Not that I'm complaining," House added quickly.

"Did you hang up your jacket?" Cuddy asked him.

"If I say that I did will you believe me?" House asked back.

"No."

House pulled his t- shirt over his head and tossed it into the wicker hamper that was situated in the corner, lay- up style. He let out a "_yes_!" as he made the shot.

"Better call the NBA," Cuddy snarked.

"I thought I told you to stop reading," House reminded her.

"It's not a pregnancy book," Cuddy assured him.

House arched his eyebrow, now slightly interested in what she was reading. Without asking, he took the book off the bed and out of her reach.

"Don't lose my page," she warned him.

"'_A Rogue of My Own_,'" House read off the cover in a dramatic fashion as he flapped the page that Cuddy had been reading.

"It's historical fiction. I wanted something mindless for a change," she explained with a shrug.

House turned to the inside front cover of the book, squinting his eyes as he began to read the blurb aloud.

"_When Rupert, a double agent for Queen Victoria, obtains proof that Rebecca, a maid of honor in the Queen's court, is spying on him, he seduces her. He hardly suspects her guileless nature. Forced to the altar, Rupert believes that Rebecca has set a trap of the worst sort in order to marry into his powerful family_," House read, his voice still full of bravado.

Cuddy smiled at his overly dramatic tone of voice, enjoying how he was making fun of the book she had chosen.

"_Although he vows never to be faithful to his beautiful wife, as Rupert comes to know Rebecca's wit, adventurous spirit, and generous nature, his vow of revenge turns into a desire to share many passionate nights only with his wife for the rest of his life_," he continued.

"I said it was mindless," she said, the smile still on her face.

"_AND_ apparently full of good old fashioned nineteenth century porn," House commented.

"You could read it if you want," she offered.

"Ehh, I'm still finishing '_Lesbian Prison Stories, Volume 4_,'" House quipped.

"Ah, the classics never die," Cuddy teased.

House chuckled a bit as he unzipped his jeans and stepped out of them, leaving them on the floor, knowing that Cuddy would be happy enough that he had thrown his t- shirt into the hamper. He then took off his socks and joined Cuddy on the bed. She closed the book on the page that House had flapped and placed it on her nightstand.

He pulled her into his arms and she lay on his chest, caressing his bare stomach.

"How's your patient?" Cuddy asked.

"Hepatic abscess. Chase took care of it," House replied casually as he softly thread his fingers through her hair.

At this, Cuddy looked up at him with widened eyes.

"Chase left his post at the NICU to do you a favor?" she asked in surprise.

"Are you gonna fire him?" House asked.  

"Of course not. I'm just surprised," she explained.

House had to admit he was confused. "What? That he was able to stand on both feet all that time without collapsing in pain?"

"That he's still that loyal to you."

As Cuddy lay back down on his chest, House caressed her shoulder, his fingertips slipping underneath the thin strap of her teddy.

As he recalled that Chase had seen him and Cate in the parking lot together that evening, House wondered how deep Chase's loyalty went.

Of course, Chase hadn't been privy to his and Cate's session, so he had no idea what they had discussed.

But House knew that Chase would interpret his insistence to keep this a secret from Cuddy, Sophie and Wilson as a basic admission of having an affair.

He had known Chase for a long time, and he knew that Chase usually never had a moral opposition to anything he did, unless it would result in him getting sued or fired.

It was probably one of the reasons why he kept the kid around for as long as he did. It was always good to have someone who was morally bankrupt around when he needed to get things done.

That, and he hated interviewing.

But ever since he had fired Chase and Cuddy had rehired him back to the surgical staff, he had found Chase to be a valuable resource. Over the years, House had alienated most of the surgeons at PPTH in one way or another.

But Chase had always been willing to do whatever procedure he thought was necessary to save a patient's life for him.

Sometimes, it took a bit more coaxing than others, but in the end, Chase always came through.

And Chase had changed, too. He'd grown up over the years. He wasn't the sniveling, spoiled kiss ass that he used to be. He was an accomplished, creative doctor that could stand on his own.

And now, he was in a committed relationship.

House hoped he was right about Chase.

As he felt Cuddy lift her leg a bit and drape it over his left thigh, he decided not to dwell on Chase for the rest of the night.

"So what's going on today?" he asked her.

"Still tired. And still peeing a lot. And my stomach hurts," she replied.

"Constipation?" he asked.

"I think it's my uterus stretching to make room for the baby," she said, her voice taking on a hint of excitement.

House nodded. "No more mood swings?"

"Not today," she replied.

At this, Cuddy lifted her head once more and rested her chin on his chest. Her soft blue- grey eyes were regretful.

"…I'm sorry about the other day," she said.

House touched her cheek and jawline delicately with his fingertips.

"I overreacted about you calling me 'mommy' in front of Dr. Milton. I know that you'd never tell her that I was pregnant," she continued.

House kept a neutral face while his insides churned, thinking that it had only been less than an hour ago that he _HAD_ told Cate that she was pregnant.

"What about the other stuff?" House asked instead.

"You were right about that too. There's no reason to think that I can't have a healthy, normal pregnancy. I guess my imagination just ran away with me for a moment," she replied.

"C'mere," he said to her.

Cuddy scooted up a bit and rest her head on the pillow. They both shifted their positions so they were lying on their sides, facing each other. He cupped her face tenderly as his lips brushed over hers, slowly, decadently, as if he was kissing her for the first time.

Cuddy could feel herself being swept away by his tender kiss. It was as if his lips were searching the deepest part of her.

She lightly whimpered into his mouth as he reached up to caress her breast over her teddy, his thumb grazing her nipple.

Sometimes, she still couldn't get over how gentle Greg House could be.

He slipped his hand underneath the hem of her teddy, his fingers skating over her stomach and back up to her breast. Once again, he caressed her so carefully, so gently, his fingers and the palm of his hand sending tingles through her.

Cuddy rolled onto her back as House dipped his head down to her body. He trailed his lips down her neck, her collarbone, his mouth brushing over the curves of her breast, his tongue tracing her nipple.

She whimpered again, smiling softly as his eyes locked on hers.

His hand then traced down her stomach, his fingers splayed out over her belly.

He kissed down the swell of her breast to her upper abdomen, his lips stopping there.

He looked at her once more.

"You wanna kiss the baby?" she asked him softly.

He nodded.

She threaded her fingers through his closely cropped hair, encouraging him on.

As his hand and lips caressed her belly, she found herself again in awe of how hesitant and gentle he was.

She almost forced herself to stop thinking ahead to what a wonderful, loving father he could be. She didn't want to get ahead of herself. They were still only in the first month of their pregnancy, and anything could happen at any time.

But for the moment, she decided to reign in her obsessive, anxious side and just enjoy how wonderful House was making her feel.

"Your belly does feel bigger," he commented.

He then reached down and grabbed her behind, giving it a loving squeeze.

"Looks like your ginormous ass has some competition," he added.

"Shut up," she replied through a smile.

TBC…


	10. Chapter 10

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS FOR READING AND FOR ALL OF YOUR COMMENTS!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER!!**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-)**

*************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 10: Please read and comment.**

**THURSDAY NIGHT:**

"Is that what you're gonna wear?" Chase asked.

Sophie looked down at herself. She was wearing hip hugging dark red- dyed jeans, a black fitted scoop neck tank and a pair of cork and black high- heeled wedged sandals. The neckline of the top was trimmed with a ruffle, adding an even more feminine look to her ensemble, her cleavage and the top swells of her breasts peeking out of the neckline.

"You don't like it?" she asked him.

"No, I love it. Just thought you'd show a little more skin, that's all," he replied as he fastened the buttons on his rumpled linen white shirt, leaving the top two buttons undone.  

Sophie grinned. "I thought you didn't want 'Danny the Intern' leering at my breasts the whole night," she reminded him coyly.

Chase shrugged. "Doesn't mean I don't want to show him what he can't have," he replied with a playful smirk.

Sophie laughed a bit as she picked up her Tiffany key necklace that Chase had bought for her from the night table. Seeing that she was having trouble with the clasp, he limped the few steps across their bedroom to her, deciding to leave his shirt untucked over his jeans.

Sophie swept her hair off her neck as Chase helped her fasten the clasp.

"So how does this work?" Chase asked from behind her.

"They play Omaha. Texas Hold 'Em isn't that different at their level. I'll go over the basics and then we'll play. Shouldn't take them long to catch on," she said off- handedly, scrutinizing her appearance in the mirror that was affixed to their dresser.

"No, I mean do we signal? Are you gonna nudge me under the table?" Chase clarified.

Still holding her hair high on her head, she shot him dubious look through the mirror.

"You want us to _WORK TOGETHER_?" she clarified.

"Yeah, why not?" he asked.

Sophie giggled. "Because you don't know how to _DO_ that, honey."

"I'm a fast learner. You could show me a few things," Chase replied, a bit defensively.

Sophie let out an amused little sigh. "It took Joey and I _MONTHS_ to perfect our thing. You can't learn it in twenty minutes," she told him as she let go of her hair, letting it drape down her back.

Chase snorted derisively. "Excuse _ME_," he drawled.

"I'm not insulting you," she insisted, a smile tugging at her lips at how sensitive Chase was being at the moment. "Working with a partner without making it obvious to the rest of the table is difficult."

"So I'm just supposed to let you take my money?" he asked her, still looking at her through the mirror as they spoke.

Sophie turned her head over her right shoulder, giving him a coquettish look, her heart hammering inside her as she gazed at his incredibly handsome face through her long lashes.

"Well, if you're a good boy, I might give it back to you at the end of the night," she said in a low and provocative tone.

Chase's cock twitched in his pants. His eyes traced over her face, landing on her glossy lips.

"How 'bout if I'm not a good boy?" he offered, placing his hands low on her hips, pulling her back ever so slightly so she could feel the growing bulge in his jeans.

She gasped as she felt his erection against her. She lolled her head back against his chest.

"That works, too," she whispered, closing her eyes.

From behind her, Chase kissed her right shoulder as his right hand skated up across her torso. He slipped his hand underneath her tank and her bra by way of the ruffled neckline, his luscious, full lips trailing up to her neck, tasting her sweet, salty skin.

Sophie whimpered at his touch. She let out a tiny moan, her tongue touching her upper lip at the feel of his fingertips teasing her nipple.

Chase then found the hem of her top with his other hand, lifting it slightly as he began to unbutton her jeans.

"I'm supposed to be getting dressed. Not _UNDRESSED_," she breathed, feeling the space between her legs become tingly and damp.

"Thought you didn't want me to be a good boy," he whispered huskily into her ear.

After deftly working the button and zipper on her jeans, he slid his hand down underneath the front of the scrap of panties she was wearing. She gasped a bit louder this time.

"…We're gonna be late," she managed to say, her breath catching in her throat.

"Ask me if I care," he breathed against her neck.

Sophie reached behind her, maneuvering her hand in between their bodies and stroked his bulge over his jeans with the palm of her hand.

"You really wanna hustle these guys?" she asked, her voice breathy with excitement.

"Hell yes," he groaned desperately, pushing against her palm, his arousal aching to be released from the confines of his jeans.

She turned around to face him and started to quickly unbutton his shirt.

"Then you have to follow my lead," she told him, her eyes smoldering.

"Wouldn't have it any other way," he replied before his lips crashed down on hers. 

------------------------------------------------------------------ 

By they time they were headed up the walkway to Danny's three- story Edwardian- style apartment building, they were at least thirty minutes late.

Chase snuck a peek as her as he limped next to her. Her hair was still slightly disheveled and her cheeks were still pink from their impromptu sexcapades.

"You're still flushed," he commented, raking his fingers through his own hair.

"Take it as a compliment," she said.

Chase grinned slyly. "I am."

Sophie pressed the intercom buzzer next to the door, waiting for Danny to let them in.

"Come on up, Soph," Danny's voice echoed through the intercom as the door unlocked.

Chase shot her a sidelong glance. "Guess Danny the Intern forgot that he invited both of us," he snarked.

"I'm sure he didn't," Sophie said.

But when they entered the apartment building, their eyes were immediately drawn to the long and winding staircase in front of them.

Sophie tsked. "He's on the third floor," she mumbled.

"S'ok. We have steps in our house, remember?" he said.

"Not this many. And he should've told us. He knows about your ankle," she said, clearly annoyed at Danny's oversight.

Chase smiled softly and affectionately at her. "Then he'll just have to wait longer for us to get to the top."

Sophie returned his smile. "Tell me if you have pain, ok?"

Chase nodded and they began to ascend the stairs, one at a time. Chase held onto the hand railing and used his cane with his other hand. Sophie took each step with him.

"By the way, how long were you planning on keeping this secret from me?" Sophie asked after they had crossed the fifth step.

Chase froze for a moment, stopping his ascent up the staircase.

He hadn't told Sophie about seeing House and Cate in the parking lot together. If House had found out that Sophie knew, House would assume that he told her, thereby betraying his trust.

And then House would make Chase's life a living hell.

"… What secret?" he asked her innocently.

"You really didn't think I'd find out about the pool you and House have about my brother's marriage?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

Chase breathed an inward sigh of relief. He laughed sheepishly.

"You're not angry?" he asked her.

"If I was angry, I wouldn't have placed a bet," she replied simply as they continued up the stairs.

Chase was shocked. "You bet against your _OWN BROTHER_?!" he exclaimed.

"No, I bet against _HER_," she muttered, her voice taking on an air of disgust at the end of her sentence.

"… Because… she wants you to wear an ugly dress for a few hours?" he asked, his brow furrowing.

"Because she's out of control with this wedding. She's dragging him all over the place. She's interrupting him during work hours. All she talks about is this stupid wedding," Sophie told him.

"She's just excited," Chase commented.

"Well, her _'excitement'_ is making Jimmy miserable," she replied.

"He's best friends with House. He seems to have a high tolerance for misery," Chase pointed out.

"This is different," she mumbled.

"…So… how much time did you give them before the divorce?" Chase asked, not wanting to press her further about specifics.

"None. They're not gonna get married," Sophie said curtly.

"…You... actually think they're gonna break up before the wedding?" Chase asked in disbelief.

"Yep."  "How much did you bet?" Chase asked curiously.

"Five hundred," she replied.

Chase tsked. "It's a long shot."

"I'll cut ya in," she offered.

He laughed. "No thanks."

"Ok, don't say I didn't offer," she said with a shrug as they continued to make their way slowly up the steps. 

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

At around the same time, Wilson was trying to catch his breath as he lay on his back naked on his bed, his fingers idly feathering through Debbie's long blond hair that was draped across his chest. Her head was resting in the space between his shoulder and collarbone, her slim yet curvy body pressed up against his side.  

"I'm really glad you convinced me to watch porn with you tonight," Debbie said with an incredibly satisfied smile on her face.

Wilson chuckled lazily, remembering that it had taken a bit of coaxing to get Debbie to agree to watch Cinemax on Demand with him while they made love.

But as he had pressed himself up against her from behind, kissing the back of her neck and caressing her perky breasts and supple, lithe curves while she watched, it hadn't taken long for her to let her inhibitions go.

"Yeah, that was good, wasn't it?" he asked her.

Debbie nodded, her smile remaining. She lifted her head a bit and gently brushed her lips with his.

She nestled back down against him. They both exhaled deeply and happily as they enjoyed the afterglow and the comfortable silence together. Debbie caressed his bare chest as Wilson trailed his hand down her back.

"'_Avondale Midnight,'_" Debbie suddenly said.

"Excuse me?" Wilson asked, a bit confused, looking down at her.

"That's what my porn star name would be," Debbie explained.

Wilson chuckled. "How'd you pick that one?" he asked.

Debbie rolled onto her stomach and rested her chin against Wilson's chest, draping her arm over him.

"You take the street you used to live on where you grew up as your first name, and then your childhood pet's name as your last name," she said.

"Hmm," Wilson said.

"Midnight was my cat," she added.

"What if you don't have a pet?" he asked, brushing a stray lock of blonde hair from her lovely face.

"Then I guess you just use the street name. Could be more exotic that way," she said with a shrug.

Wilson only paused for a moment.

"'_Kennedy Watson,'_" he declared with bravado.

Debbie burst out laughing at his self- proclaimed porn-star name.

"Who was Watson?" she asked.

"My goldfish," he replied defensively.

"I don't know if you're gonna get a lot of work with that name," she managed to say as she laughed even harder.

Wilson laughed along with her. "You should see my resume. I did '_Naked Oncologists One _AND_ Two_,'" he joked.

"I thought it was '_Boy Wonder Oncologist Does the Nursing Staff_,'" she teased back.

"You're so lucky I'm not going for the '_Debbie Does Accounting_' jokes," he said coyly.

Debbie giggled. "Trust me. I've heard that one."

"Well, you'd make a lousy porn star because you're a great actress," Wilson said.

"I'm actually surprised that House hasn't figured out that my Bridezilla persona is all an act," she mentioned.

"It also helps that he's a bit distracted at the moment," he reminded her.

"Well as of today, the pool on the death of our impending marriage is up to eighty five hundred," Debbie told him with glee.

At this, Wilson rolled Debbie onto her back and settled on top of her, pressing his naked body up against hers. He kissed his way down her jawline to her neck.

"So how pissed do you think House is gonna be when we finally pretend to break up in the hospital cafeteria?" Debbie asked him, running her fingers through the back of his hair.

"Not as pissed as Chase is gonna be when he finds out that this was all Sophie's idea," Wilson mumbled against her skin. 

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"Hey you finally made it!" Danny said in a friendly manner to Sophie and Chase as he opened the door to his apartment to let them in.

As Chase and Sophie entered his apartment, Danny put his hand lightly on Sophie's back and kissed her cheek.

Danny then extended his hand out to Chase, who shook it reluctantly, not thrilled that he had kissed Sophie right in front of him.

"Would you like a beer or something?" Danny offered.

"Not for me," Sophie said, shaking her head a bit. She never drank while she played.

"I'll have a beer," Chase said.

"Sorry I don't have Fosters, Dr. Chase. Just Heineken, if that's all right," Danny called out over his shoulder as he made his way into the kitchen.

Chase wasn't in the mood to tell him that Foster's is made for Yanks who couldn't tell a good beer from horse piss.

And he was pretty sure that the Fosters comment was another slight against him.

"… That's fine," Chase said.

Danny returned after a few moments with Chase's beer and another one for himself. He led the two of them into the living room.

Danny introduced both Sophie and Chase to Keith, Rich and John. Chase recognized all three of them from the hospital. He nodded a greeting, shaking each of their hands in turn as they got up off the couch. Sophie said 'hello' to them as well.

"Sorry, no chips, just cash. We're not that sophisticated around here," Danny said in a sheepish manner as they all walked over to his round dining room table and took their seats.

"Cash is always good," Sophie assured them, watching Chase take his seat.

She then took her own seat, purposely sitting directly across from Chase at the table.

Sensing an opportunity, Danny immediately snagged an empty seat next to Sophie on her right side.

"Dan told us that you're a pro. Does that mean we're screwed?" Keith asked.

"Don't worry. It's your first time. I'll go easy on you," Sophie assured him.

Danny handed her a brand new deck of cards.

"Ladies first," he said, his voice dripping with charm.

"How's twenty- forty?" Sophie asked everyone as she began to shuffle the deck, her hands making small, controlled movements as she did so, her eyes glued to the deck.

"Fine with us," Danny said, looking at everyone else at the table, who agreed.

Chase noticed that Sophie didn't take her eyes off the deck as she shuffled.

"Blind bets first," she finally said, nodding to Keith and John, who were seated to the left of her.

Keith and John nodded in understanding, putting in the small and big blinds.

Sophie then dealt each player their two hole cards, keeping her gaze on the deck and her hands.

"So how different is Texas Hold 'Em from Omaha?" Rich asked as he peeked at his hole cards.

"Not too different," she replied, watching his face as he glanced at his hand.

She then shifted her gaze to Chase, raising her left eyebrow almost undetectably.

Catching her gaze, Chase peeked at his hole cards.

Sophie had dealt him an Ace of Clubs and an Ace of Diamonds.

He raised his eyes back up at her casually, his eyebrow raising just as slightly as hers had, knowing that there was no way he could have been that lucky to get a top two pair.

"_But some people are faster learners than others_," she said, her eyes still on Chase.

To everyone else at the table, her tone and her eyes revealed nothing.

But to him, her stoic expression spoke volumes.

"Your bet first, babe," Sophie told him casually, jutting her chin at him.

Chase put two twenties, double the minimum bet, into the middle of the table. Everyone else then took turns either calling, raising or checking.

After the first round of bets were done, Sophie dealt the flop, the first three community cards, which were a Three of Spades, A seven of Hearts and an Ace of Spades.

Chase checked his hole cards once more, making sure that he wasn't hallucinating that Sophie had just dealt him a monster three- of- a- kind on the flop.

Her gaze still on Chase, Sophie's lips turned up at the corners just a bit, knowing that Chase was quite eager to give Danny the Intern a good metaphorical spanking.

TBC…


	11. Chapter 11

**HI EVERYONE!**

**SORRY AGAIN FOR THE DELAY. I HAD TROUBLE MAKING A DECISION ABOUT THIS CHAPTER.**

**I HOPE I MADE THE RIGHT ONE.**

**THINGS ARE ABOUT TO TAKE AN INTERESTING TURN...**

**THANKS FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY. :-) **

*************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 11:**

By this point, Chase, Sophie, Danny and his friends Keith, Rich and John, had been playing poker for almost two hours.

And in that two hours, Sophie had managed to take a total of fifteen hundred dollars off of everyone else at the table, including Chase.

But Chase couldn't care less.

He was too busy enjoying himself.

Sophie was clearly in her element. Her concentration was unrelenting as she read right through Danny and his friends tells, taking one pot after another off the table, all the while wearing her little cool, serene half smile on her face.

In her years as a rounder, Sophie had always found that the nicer the guy, the worse the card player they were.

Danny's friends happened to be real sweethearts.

Despite the fact that Danny and his friends had caught on to Texas Hold 'Em quickly, none of them were even close to being decent poker players. Most of the time, they either folded too early, or wore their tells like signs around their necks.

Of which Sophie had taken full advantage.

After Chase's monster "lucky" first hand of trip Aces, Sophie knew that she wouldn't be able to use her mechanic's grip every time it was her turn to deal because it would be too obvious.

But every once in a while when the deck came her way, she'd throw Chase at least one Ace, just to give him a high card advantage. When she did, he'd stay in the hand, betting his way to a win most of the time.

At the moment, Sophie and Chase were the only ones left in the current hand. Danny and his friends had folded early on and were just watching the two of them face off.

It was quite obvious to Danny that both Sophie and Chase were getting off on playing against each other.

And it was making him sicker by the minute.

"I raise," Chase said confidently, tossing in a hundred dollars into the middle.

"Call," Sophie said, matching his bet.

As Chase was about to deal the River, or fifth and final card of the hand, Sophie interrupted him.

"If you're waiting to use that third six you've got in the hole, don't bother. I've got the boat," Sophie told Chase with a sparkle in her eyes and a simple smile.

"Pfft," Chase said with a sheepish laugh as he tossed his cards away from him.

Sophie then pulled the small pot of cash that was in the middle of the table towards her.

"What are you smiling about? Your girlfriend's kicking your arse," Danny muttered to Chase.

Chase shrugged. "Guess I like pain," Chase replied, giving Sophie a wink.

Sophie pressed her lips together to stifle a giggle that was threatening to escape.

"So how did you become a pro at sixteen, anyway? They give a poker class at your high school or something?" Danny asked as he watched Sophie organize her cash.

Sophie chuckled. "Not exactly," she said as she sorted the bills in front of her by denomination.

Chase, having never heard this story, popped his eyebrows up a bit with interest.  "When I was seven, my brother taught me five card draw. We used to play for pennies. By the time I was ten, I could count cards… and I had a lot more pennies than he did," Sophie began.

Chase chuckled slightly, imagining Wilson losing a pile of change to his little sister.

"By the time I was sixteen, while most of my classmates were making out with each other, I had read every book on poker I could find and I had learned every variation on stud, draw, hi/ lo and Hold 'Em," she continued.

"Wow. So you started playing in casinos with a fake ID?" Danny's friend John asked with interest.

"No. I went to underground card clubs with some of my friends on Saturday nights," she replied.

Chase was shocked. "At _SIXTEEN_?" he clarified, his eyes wide.

"Yep," she said simply.

The rest of the table was just as shocked as Chase was.

Chase wanted to ask her how her parents felt about their teenage daughter going to seedy underground card clubs in Manhattan, but he didn't want to ask her that in front of the other guys.

"…How'd you do?" Danny finally asked her as he took the cards to reshuffle them.

"Pretty lousy at first. But I learned quickly. Only took me about three months to start building a bankroll," she told him.

Danny turned down his lower lip, impressed.

After the blind bets were placed for the next hand, Danny dealt each player at the table two cards. Sophie watched every player carefully as they looked at their hole cards.

As each of their turns came around to make a move, John and Keith folded immediately. Chase, Rich, Sophie and Danny raised and called.

"You must really rake in the dough online," Keith commented.

"She doesn't play poker online," Chase answered for her.

Sophie nodded in agreement.

"Why not?" Keith asked.

"She can't see the other players," Chase explained with a smug little grin.

Danny dealt the flop, the first three community cards as he contemplated this.

"Lots of people make plenty of money at online poker," Danny said as he peeked at his hole cards once more.

After another round of bets, Rich and Chase folded their hands while Danny raised fifty dollars.

"Faces and body language reveal everything," she said as she placed her own fifty into the pot, matching his bet.

Danny immediately re- raised the bet with fifty dollars more. Sophie only paused for a second before matching it once more.

As Danny revealed the Turn, or the fourth card, he sat up a bit straighter, squaring off his shoulders and leaned slightly forward, staring intently at Sophie.

"Ok, then what does my face and body language reveal to you right now?" he asked her with a self- righteous and condescending smirk.

Sophie gave him an exaggerated once- over with her eyes while everyone else waited impatiently for her answer. Chase could feel his excitement growing inside him.

She then stared right back at Danny with an intense, yet completely cool gaze.

"That you've got a Jack in the hole which gives you three of a kind," she stated confidently.

Chase grinned at how Danny's face fell so dramatically.

"And now you have to decide if I at least flopped the nut straight, because that would be the only hand that would keep me in," she added, never breaking her stare.

Danny licked his lip nervously, his eyes darting from the community cards, to her face- down hole cards and then back up to her face.

She was wearing the same calm expression.

"Or _would_ it?" she asked calmly, her face not changing in the slightest.

Danny grunted, tossing his cards into the middle of the table.

"Take it down," he muttered.

Chase grinned again as he as took his bottle of Ultram out of his pocket and popped his last dose of Ultram for the night into his mouth while Sophie collected her winnings once again.

"So Dr. Chase, I hear you're an avid snowboarder," Danny suddenly said out of nowhere, turning towards him as he spoke.

Chase narrowed his brow in confusion, flitting his eyes towards Sophie, who was also bewildered at the randomness at his question.

"… Yeah. How'd you hear that?" Chase asked, somewhat guardedly.

"Dr. Cameron told me. She says you never miss a chance to go," Danny replied.

"Cameron doesn't work at PPTH anymore," he said, now becoming suspicious.

"She was my boss in the ER last year for a few months before she left," Danny explained off- handedly.

Chase nodded slowly. "Oh… Well, I haven't been boarding in a while."

"Because of your leg?" Danny pressed.

Chase nodded once, avoiding Danny as he counted his winnings in front of him.

By now, Danny's friends were exchanging curious, yet somewhat amused glances.

Sophie inhaled through her nose as she noticed the other guys' faces, having an uneasy feeling that these questions weren't as innocent as they appeared to be.

"What happened if you don't mind me asking?" Danny probed.

Chase looked up from his cash and glared at Danny, knowing for sure that Danny had no real interest in his leg and was just trying to embarrass him.

"I fell and broke my ankle during Christmas," Chase replied curtly.

"That was six months ago. Shouldn't a broken ankle have healed by now?" Danny asked, arching his eyebrow.

Chase sat back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest defensively.

"Didn't realize I asked you for a second opinion, doctor," Chase snarked at him.

Danny shrugged. "No, I'm just saying, it really sucks that you need a cane…" Danny said, pausing for effect.

Sophie could feel the anger rising in Chase from her seat across from him at the table.

She had broken up enough fights at poker tables between Joey and other players to know when one was about to start.

"Robbie…" she began gently.

"And why is that?" Chase demanded, tightening his jaw and trying to keep his anger in check.

"Well, I don't know about you, dude, but I've never seen boarders on the slopes doing an Ollie with a cane in one hand while they grab the board with their other hand," Danny said with an arrogant chuckle as he looked at his friends for confirmation.

As Chase stood up out of his chair, ready to punch Danny in the face across the table, Sophie rushed over to him and grabbed his arm.

"Robbie, _DON'T_," she stated firmly, his bicep flexed under her hand.

As Chase's eyes blazed furiously at Danny, Danny remained in his seat and cocked his head, returning his stare with obvious amusement.

His friends had all moved back in their chairs, eagerly anticipating Chase's next move. 

"He's not worth it," Sophie added in the same firm voice, trying to remain calm and hoping that she'd be able to hold him back.

After what seemed like an eternity, Chase finally unclenched and turned to face her. He glanced at her hand on his arm and then up at her face.

"Let's just go," she said to him in a soft, almost pleading voice.

Chase finally nodded, grabbed his cane off the back of his chair, took her hand and left the table with her.

"Wait! You forgot your winnings!" Danny called out after them, thoroughly enjoying how he had rattled Chase.

Sophie turned around, walked the few steps back to the table, took the cash she had left on the table, folded it into a roll and stuffed it into her front pocket.

She then turned back around and followed Chase out the door, closing it softly behind her.

As they approached the long and winding staircase once again that led back down from Danny's third floor apartment to the ground floor, Sophie touched Chase's shoulder once more.

"You want me to help you?" she asked.

Chase shook her hand off him a bit more roughly than he had intended to.

"I can do it," he answered gruffly as he began to make his way slowly down the stairs. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------- 

As Sophie and Chase were driving home in silence from Danny's apartment, Sophie's cell phone beeped indicating a voicemail.

Chase glanced at her briefly as she opened her phone and listened to the message.

"Who was that?" he asked.

"My mom. She wants to know if this weekend would be all right for her and my dad to come out and see the house," Sophie replied.

Chase shrugged. "That's fine," he said in a noncommittal tone.

"…Would you rather them stay in a hotel than in our place?" Sophie asked.

"I don't care," Chase mumbled, keeping his eyes on the road.

"Because… I can book a hotel for them," she continued. "There's the campus Marriott—"

"I said _I didn't care_," Chase repeated, spacing out each word a bit in his sentence, his voice tight with anger that was just seething beneath the surface.

"Why are you so angry?" Sophie asked.

"I'm not angry," he muttered.

Sophie paused, knowing that Chase was lying.

"Ok," she said, looking out the window into the darkness.

There was a long silence between them before Chase finally broke it.

"Why'd you take the money?" Chase demanded.

"Because I _EARNED_ the money," she shot back.

Chase clenched his jaw once more. He tightened his grip on the steering wheel, his knuckles turning white in the process.

He could feel uncontrollable rage rising inside of him.

"And that's not why you're angry. You're angry because I stopped you from punching him in the face—" she began.

"_I'M ANGRY BECAUSE YOU WANTED TO HELP ME DOWN THE FUCKING STAIRS!!_" Chase shouted at her, lifting his hand up and slamming it back down onto the steering wheel.

Sophie gasped out loud, flinching in the passenger seat, completely startled by his incredibly angry outburst.

He gripped the steering wheel once more, took a deep breath and exhaled, willing himself to calm down.

"I'm not an invalid," he stated in a softer, more controlled tone.

Sophie's heart was hammering nervously in her chest, suddenly feeling trapped inside the car.

Chase rarely raised her voice to her.

And he had _NEVER_ raised his hands.

"…I- I know you're not an invalid. I never said you were," she said as gently as she could, her voice quivering.

Chase was still breathing a bit heavy, trying to get his anger under control.

"I just… c-care about you and… he was being an asshole—" she continued.

"That doesn't mean I can't walk down a flight of stairs," he snapped curtly.

She nodded. "I- I know that. I'm sorry," she said quickly, her voice full of anxiety.

Chase glanced at her once more as he continued to drive.

In the semi- darkness of the car, he could see that she was trembling a bit.

Chase exhaled deeply. Feeling guilty that he had lashed out at her like that, he took one hand off the steering wheel and reached over to take her hand in his in an apology.

"Sweetie, I'm sorry—" he began with remorse.

As he did, Sophie immediately pulled her body back a bit in the seat away from him.

Chase stopped his hand in mid air before he could reach hers.

He then realized that she wasn't upset by his outburst.

She was _scared_.

He placed his hand back on the steering wheel, pulled over onto the side of the road and put the car in park.

Still shaking a bit, Sophie averted her eyes away from him.

"Baby?" he said as gently as he possibly could.

She kept her eyes on the floor of the car.

She was still trembling.

He unbuckled his seat belt and leaned over to her. As he reached up to touch her cheek, she jerked her face away from him once more, out of his reach. But he tried once more, this time putting both his hands on her face.

"Baby, please look at me," he said softly as she attempted to look away from him.

She finally relented and turned towards him. The ambient light from outside the car reflected the fear in her eyes.

He stroked her cheek delicately with his thumb, a horrible feeling spreading throughout his chest.

"… I'm so sorry I scared you," Chase said sincerely, keeping his voice soft and gentle.

Sophie nodded nervously, saying nothing.

"I should have never yelled at you like that," he continued.

"And I'd _never_ raise my hands you," he added sincerely.

Sophie exhaled a bit, and nodded again, trying to calm down.

He leaned over as far as he could and wrapped his arms around her, rubbing her back to reassure her.

She eventually hugged him back, burying her face in his neck, taking a few deep breaths to calm down in his embrace.

"… I'd never hurt you, baby," Chase whispered, still having no idea where his anger had come from.

TBC…


	12. Chapter 12

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS SO MUCH FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**AND FOR THOSE WHO WANTED MORE HUDDY, YOUR WISH IS MY COMMAND! ;D**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

***************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 12:**

**NEXT MORNING. FRIDAY.**

House woke up that morning in his and Cuddy's bed alone at a little after eight am to the sound of his cell phone playing "SexyBack," by Justin Timberlake, indicating he had a text message.

He knew that if he had a case that Foreman would just call and not text. And Wilson knew better than to text him this early unless he was dying. And even then, he'd probably call and not type.

He reluctantly reached for the phone to read the message. Still bleary eyed, he rubbed his face as he tried to focus on the digital readout on the phone:

**"WE STILL ON FOR LATER TODAY? CATE"**

House exhaled and slumped back on the bed, closing the phone shut in the process, not bothering to text her back.

As if on cue, his leg started to throb as it did every morning. He pushed himself up to a sitting position, grabbed his bottle of Vicodin, swallowed two pills dry, and began to massage his leg as deeply as he could without causing more pain in the process.

He had to admit that his first session with Cate was interesting. Nothing he had said to her fazed her in any way, and he was able to skillfully deflect most of her probing questions.

But he still didn't feel it was a waste of his time.

He liked talking to her.

He just couldn't figure out why yet.

He wasn't sure if he wanted to make their sessions an ongoing thing. He hated making appointments in advance and he didn't know how he'd be able to continue hiding it from everyone he knew if his absence from his office started to become a noticeable pattern.

And he had never intended Chase to find out, but he had. But so far, it didn't seem that he had told anyone about it.

As House pondered all of this, he heard noises coming from their bathroom that he had become familiar with over the course of the past week.

He pushed himself out of the bed, grabbed his cane and limped barefoot down the hallway, clad in his white t- shirt and blue striped pajama pants.

Upon opening the door, he found Cuddy wearing a large bath towel around her body, her dark wet curls swept up in a tortoiseshell clip, having just come out of the shower.

And just like had found her all week, she was hunched over the toilet, throwing up.

"You realize that you've vomited at exactly the same time every morning for the past five days? Even your stomach is obsessive," House commented as he leaned against the door frame.

Cuddy spit into the toilet. "Shut up," she mumbled.

House couldn't help but smirk. Even doubled over in this way, suffering from early morning pregnancy nausea, she still wouldn't take his crap.

"You need anything?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

"No," she managed to say, shaking her head a bit.

House watched her as she inhaled deeply and closed her eyes. A few moments later, still kneeling, she sat up straighter, resting on her heels and took another deep breath.

"Ok. I think that's it," she said weakly.

Grabbing onto the front of the towel to prevent it from falling off her body, she stood up slowly and took a tissue out of a box that was resting on the top of the toilet. She wiped her mouth, tossed the tissue and went to the sink to brush her teeth.

"When does Sobol want to see you again?" House asked, referring to her OB/ Gyn.

"Not for another four weeks," she said as she brushed her teeth, feeling her strength return.

"You've been taking your vitamins?" House asked her.

Cuddy spit the excess toothpaste into the sink and nodded.

"At night so I don't puke them up," she assured him.

"…Maybe you should take the day off," he suggested.

"That's ridiculous. I'm not sick. I'm pregnant. The nausea'll pass like it always does," she stated dismissively.

"You look like crap. Stay home," he repeated.

"Thanks," she said dryly with an eyeroll.

"And I can't stay home. I have too much to do," she added, rinsing off her brush and placing it in the toothbrush holder next to his.

House tsked. "Like what?" he demanded lightly.

"I have the budget report and the payroll spreadsheets to analyze, a Board meeting, a Transplant Committee meeting and _YOU_ have Clinic duty and none of those things will take place unless I'm there," she replied as she walked past him out of the bathroom and back into their bedroom to get dressed.

House followed her back into the bedroom and sat back on the bed. As she opened up their large, walk in closet to choose the suit she was going to wear that day, House grabbed her copy of '_What to Expect When You're Expecting_,' off the dresser.

Scanning the index, he quickly found the page he was looking for.

"_Morning sickness is more common among women who are under a great deal of stress, at work, at home or at both. See page 125 for tips on dealing with stress during pregnancy,_" House quoted aloud from the book.

Cuddy glared at him, taking her attention away from two different Chanel suits she was holding.

"I thought you told me to stop reading," she reminded him.

"Which is why _I'M_ looking for page 125 and you're _NOT_," he said as he turned to page 125.

Cuddy sighed in exasperation as she lay her plum colored suit neatly on the bed and placed the olive one back in the closet. She chose a black pair of Prada four inch heeled pumps and put them at the foot of the bed.

"_Identify sources of stress in your life and determine how they can be modified. If you're clearly trying to do too much, cut back in areas that are not high priority. If you've taken on too many responsibilities at home or at work, decide which can be postponed or delegated to someone else,_" House read off page 125.

Cuddy found a lacy ivory camisole to wear under her suit in her top dresser drawer and tossed it onto the bed in indignance.

"I _CAN'T_ postpone or delegate any of my responsibilities… and as far as sources of stress in my life, how about the fact that after all these years I _STILL_ have to send out a search party after you and come up with creative tricks for you to do Clinic Duty?" she demanded.

With that, she flung the towel off her naked body into the corner of the room, not bothering to place it in the hamper that she insisted that House use.

House raised his eyebrows at her nakedness, but was more interested in the fact that she left the towel in the corner.

"I'll do the Clinic duty," he told her.

"No you won't. You'll get one of your team members to sign your name on the roster," she said with disgust as she rummaged through her underwear drawer for panties and a bra that would hopefully still fit her.

"I'll do the Clinic duty myself," he offered.

Cuddy slipped on an ivory thong and then tried to fit an ivory lacy bra around her newly- voluptuous pregnancy breasts, but wasn't having much luck.

"Gracing us with your presence down there for one case and stealing a lollipop _ISN'T_ doing Clinic Duty," she stated as she struggled to close the bra on the tightest hook.

House's lips turned up at the corners as he watched her wage war with her bra hook.

"Need some help?" he asked with amusement.

Cuddy snorted. "… Yes," she admitted.

House made his way towards her and positioned himself behind her. He took both ends of the bra and hooked them together on the first hook, making it as loose as possible so she would be comfortable.

"Hm. Not really used to putting one of these _ON_," he commented.

"I was waiting for that. What took you so long?" she muttered.

"I'll stay in the Clinic the whole day," he said.

"And what do I have to do to keep it interesting for you? Hire a team of hookers in nurse's outfits?" she quipped.

"Nothing," he replied simply.

At this, Cuddy spun her head around to face him, completely stunned.

"You're… actually offering to stay down there for an entire day… for _NOTHING_ in return," she clarified.

"Yep," he said with a nod.

Cuddy's lips were still parted in surprise when she quickly realized that she'd better accept his offer before he came to his senses.

"… Ok," she said, shaking her head slightly and lifting her shoulders.

He leaned over and sweetly pecked her on the lips.

"Great. I'll shower," he said almost jovially before leaving the bedroom.

Cuddy was still only clad in her bra and panties, still in a state of shock as she heard House turn on the water in the bathroom. 

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Later that day, at around 2 pm, Wilson walked into the Clinic.

He immediately spotted House at the nurse's station, filling in a patient's chart he had just seen, a lollipop in his mouth.

Without saying anything to House, Wilson quickly turned on his heel and went right into Cuddy's office. Cuddy was sitting at her desk, analyzing the spread sheet of the hospital budget.

"_He's still down here?!_" Wilson exclaimed.

"Your guess is as good as mine," she shrugged, chuckling in disbelief.

Wilson stared at her for only a moment longer before exiting her office, doing an about face as he headed back to the Clinic.

House looked up from the chart he just finished writing in and saw Wilson walking right towards him.

"Here we go," House mumbled.

"You're still down here," Wilson stated in an accusatory fashion.

"You're hallucinating. I actually left three hours ago," House replied.

Wilson placed his hands squarely on his hips.

"What's going on?" he demanded.

"That's his 'Super- Oncologist pose.' He only stands like that when he's _REALLY_ angry. Or he's saving the world from the evils of managed care," House told the nurse in a conspiratorial tone.

Wilson continued to hold his akimbo posture, waiting impatiently for House to explain what he was doing down there.

"Did you lose a bet?" Wilson asked.

"Who's next?" House asked the nurse, ignoring Wilson.

"Exam room 3. Twenty- four year old female with a weird looking rash on her stomach," the nurse replied, handing him the file.

"Ooh. I _LOVE_ weird looking rashes," he said, glancing at the name on the file.

"Are you _INVOLVED_ in a bet?" Wilson asked.

"I _DON'T_ come down here, Cuddy gets angry. I _DO_ come down here, you think I have an ulterior motive," House said in annoyance.

"_Because you don't come down here!!_ You wouldn't even come down here if Cuddy held a wet t- shirt contest down here!" Wilson exclaimed, throwing up his hands.

"I might. Would your sister be a contestant?" House asked with interest.

Wilson grunted. "I'm gonna figure this out," he stated, wagging his finger at House.

"You do that. In the meantime, I have sick people to treat," House said before walking into Exam Room 3. 

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Moments later, House walked into Exam Room 3, finding Sophie sitting on top of the exam table with an anxious look.

"Hi," Sophie said with a melancholy tone.

"You actually told the nurse that you had a _'weird looking rash?'_" House asked her in disbelief as he closed the door to the exam room behind him.

"I figured that if I gave her an actual diagnosis, You wouldn't be interested and you'd toss away my file," Sophie admitted.

"Good thinking," House said as he pulled over a nearby stool on wheels with his cane.

Once he sat down, he tossed her file onto the portable tray next to him and folded his hands, meeting her eyes with his.

"And I'm betting that you don't actually have a 'weird looking rash,'" House added.

"…I need your advice," Sophie said. 

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For the next five minutes, House listened in silence as Sophie told him the entire story about the events at poker game at Danny's apartment and how Chase had violently reacted in the car.

He didn't raise an eyebrow. He didn't bat an eyelash.

He just listened until she was done.

"... So he slammed his hand on the steering wheel, and dropped the 'F Bomb,' and that's why you're so upset," House clarified.

"I know. It sounds ridiculous, but…I've just never seen him get that angry before," she said.

House had to admit to himself that he'd never seen Chase get that angry before either. Chase had always seemed a man in control of himself. Even when House had punched him in the jaw while he was detoxing a few years ago, Chase hadn't done anything. He just continued to give House his diagnosis of their patient.

He didn't even go to Cuddy or press charges for assault.

"Why'd you come to me about this? Why not go to Wilson?" House asked her.

"Because whatever he says will only be an attempt not to hurt my feelings. I wanted the truth," Sophie replied.

"Huh," House said, dipping his head down a bit, not disagreeing with her.

"You think his anger is a side effect of his meds?" Sophie asked him.

"No. You bruised his ego," House stated simply.

Sophie frowned. "I was just trying to help him," she said meekly.

"Did he _ASK_ you for help?" House pressed.

"… No," she admitted.

"Chase knows what his limitations are. He doesn't need you to constantly remind him of them," House said.

"And what Danny said just made it worse," she said, exhaling in defeat.

"Yep," House agreed.

"So what do I do?" she asked.

"Find a way to show Chase that he's still the man and stop flirting with Danny," House said simply.

"Danny asked _ME_ to the game. Not the other way around," Sophie stated defensively.

"You like it when guys show you attention because of your skills. Chase wouldn't feel threatened if he still had two good legs, but he _DOESN'T_," House stated firmly.

Sophie pressed her lips together and looked down at her lap, completely ashamed of herself.

"You said you wanted the truth," House said with a shrug.

"I did," she replied softly.

House raised his eyebrows a bit, still gazing at her as she thought about everything he had told her.

"…Thanks," she finally said as she got off the exam table and left the room. 

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At five pm that day, House was checking out of the Clinic when Cuddy came out of her office with a smile on her face.

"You really stayed the entire day," Cuddy said, still amazed.

"Stranger things have happened," House said.

"How did you stand it?" she asked.

"Had my iPod on the entire time so I didn't have to listen to the patients. I guessed most of the diagnoses. Nobody looked too appalled, so I figured I guess right most of the time," he replied.

Cuddy laughed. "Good thing I cancelled the wet t- shirt contest," she joked.

House smirked and reached into the pocket of his sport jacket, producing a folded piece of paper. He handed it to Cuddy, watching her unfold it with curiosity.

"What's this?" she asked as she scanned down the list.

"It's a list of foods that are supposed to stave off nausea. Got it from Sobol's office," he told her.

Cuddy turned down her lower lip. "_Red Hots_?" she asked skeptically as she read the list again.

"I didn't write it," House replied with a shrug.

"You _actually_ went down to his office and got this for me?" she asked.

"Technically, up. I took the elevator," he said.

Cuddy folded the list neatly and smiled up at him coyly. She then turned around and walked back to her office.

House knew that her expression was code for '_C__ome follow me back to my office so I don't have to show you affection in front of the rest of the hospital.'_

He quickly followed her into her office as she sat on the top of her desk, crossing her legs, motioning with her index finger for him to come closer to her.

"You realize that your front door is glass," House reminded her.

Cuddy grinned as he stepped in front of her. She uncrossed her legs slightly to allow House to step in between her thighs.

"I decided that I wasn't going to question your sudden transformation and that I was just going to enjoy it," she said as she gently grabbed the lapels of his jacket.

She then pulled him in close for a lingering, passionate kiss, her lips brushing his over and over again.

House wrapped his arms around her, taking in the scent of her perfume, throrougly enjoying the feeling of her full breasts again him.

"You feel like ordering in and having sex with your pregnant boss tonight?" Cuddy asked him as they broke their kiss to come up for air.

"Depends. What are we gonna order?" House asked as he reached down to palm her ass.

TBC...


	13. Chapter 13

**HI EVERYONE!**

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**CHAPTER 13: Please read and comment.**

It was around 5 pm that Friday when Chase saw Sophie through the window of the NICU.

She was wearing her student lab coat over her sleeveless blouse and slacks, her student ID badge clipped to the breast pocket, her hair swept up in a clip, and a soft smile on her face as she watched him scrub out for the day.

He smiled back at her, love and anxiety filling his chest at the same time.

He had been working in the NICU non- stop since that morning, having to work through lunch to finish paperwork that had been piling up on his desk all week. As a result, he hadn't seen Sophie all day.

They still hadn't talked about what had happened in the car the night before.

And he was dreading the conversation.

He honestly had no idea what had come over him. He knew that Sophie was only just trying to help him with the stairs that led down from Danny's apartment.

But Danny's verbal stabs during the game had penetrated so deep that her offer to help him had just twisted the knife into the wound that much more.

After he had screamed at her uncontrollably, he had pulled over to apologize and hug her. Then they had driven home without another word.

All day, the guilt had been eating away at him at how much he had scared her. He could still remember how she had been trembling and had backed away from him when he had attempted to touch her.

That night, when they had finally gone to bed, he had tentatively spooned up behind her.

She hadn't flinched or pushed him away, but she hadn't turned around to face him, either.

She just lay there.

"I'm sorry," he had said softly into her shoulder.

"I know," she had whispered in reply.

"…Sophie—"

"Let's just go to sleep, ok?" she had interrupted.

This morning, when they had driven in together, they made small talk about the weather and about her possibly doing some volunteer hours in the Clinic during the week, avoiding the metaphorical pink elephant the entire time.

But now, when he saw her though the window of the NICU, she seemed happy, as if everything in the car had never happened.

As he dried his hands with a paper towel and tossed it into the trash, Chase decided to go with it and not bring up what had happened last night unless she did.

Chase grabbed his cane from his position hanging off of the sink and limped out the NICU towards her.

"Hey. You done for the day?" she asked sweetly.

"Yep. You?" he asked.

"Mhm," she replied. She touched his face with both hands and kissed him softly, letting her lips linger on his for a moment.

Chase smiled against her kiss, feeling much of the anxiety he had dissolve.

They laced their fingers through each other's as they left the NICU area and walked towards the elevators.

"You on call this weekend?" Sophie asked him casually.

"Nope," Chase replied.

"Well that's good," she said.

They reached the elevators and Chase punched the button lightly with the back of his fist. The two of them watched the illuminated numbers descend on the display above the doors.

"What time are your parents coming tomorrow?" he asked.

"They're not. I told them to come next weekend instead," Sophie replied.

Chase took his eyes off the top of the elevator and turned towards her with a furrowed brow.

"Why?" he asked.

"Because we're going to Antigua this weekend," she replied, still looking up above the elevator doors.

Chase arched both his eyebrows, still processing what she had just told him.

"… We _are_??" he finally asked.

Sophie turned to him, unable to keep the smile off her face any longer.

"We're staying at the Blue Waters Resort. I booked us round trip tickets out of Newark. My brother's driving us to the airport and said he'd water our plants. Our flight's in three hours," she told him.

Chase shook his head stunned.

"H- how'd you pay for this?" was all he could ask her.

"I used most of the roll I won last night for the hotel, and I had enough miles on my credit card for the flight," she explained with a simple shrug.

"And I already went home to check if your passport's up to date. It is, and so is mine," she added.

"…Why'd you do all this?" he asked, still overwhelmed.

"Because I love you."

Chase shook his head again. "But… I thought you were upset—"

"You can either continue to overanalyze this or just accept the fact that I want to have an intimate weekend with you in a tropical paradise wearing as little clothing as legally possible," Sophie interrupted.

She then took both his hands in hers and leaned closer to him.

"Or _LESS_," she murmured sexily.

Slowly, as if waking from a dream, Chase smiled, his eyes sparkling as he did.

At that moment, the elevator doors opened, revealing it was empty.

Immediately, Chase pulled her inside, wrapped his arms around her, pinned her to the elevator wall and began to kiss her with great enthusiasm, causing Sophie to shriek in surprise and his cane to clatter to the floor.

With the doors still open, his lips still locked on hers, he took her lab coat off her shoulders and tossed it away from them.

"At least wait for the doors to close!" she said, giggling.

"I don't have time for that," he mumbled against her neck with a grin as he slipped his hand up the front of her blouse.  

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Around two hours later, House and Cuddy were sitting on the floor in Cuddy's living room, their backs up against the bottom of the couch, polishing off a pepperoni and sausage pizza that House insisted that they order, arguing that Cuddy needed all the iron she could get now that she was eating for two.

"If I keep eating like this, I'm gonna have cankles before my second trimester," Cuddy said, wiping her mouth with a nearby paper napkin.

House picked up the crust she had discarded and promptly took a bite of it.

"You only had once piece. Stop worrying about your weight," he said as he chewed.

Cuddy sighed as she looked down at her ever so slightly distended belly that was covered by her soft pink cotton tank top and black sweats.

"I'm only supposed to gain 25- 30 pounds the entire pregnancy," Cuddy reminded him.

"And you've been throwing up every day for the past five days. You should eat two or three pieces to make up for whatever you're gonna puke up tomorrow," he said.

Cuddy chuckled a bit. "I don't think it works like that," she said as she leaned over towards the coffee table, retrieving the list of foods that stave of nausea that House has gotten from Dr Sobol earlier that day.

House scooted closer to her and read the list over her shoulder.

"_Lemon… Ginger… Ginger Ale… Peppermint…Peppermint Candies…. Peppermint tea…Red Hots… Potato Chips… Crackers… Jell-O… Seltzer… Sprite… Flavored Popsicles… Pretzels…_," House read aloud.

He then paused and tilted his head curiously as he read the next item.

"…_'Preggie Pops_,'" House read.

"They're lollipops made specifically for pregnant women to ease nausea. Someone told me they work like a charm," Cuddy told him.

"They'd better. 'Preggie Pops' isn't exactly great marketing," House commented.

"What would you call them? 'Spew Suckers?'" Cuddy asked.

House pretended to think this over for a moment, fighting the grin that was threatening to form on his lips at Cuddy's suggestion.

"'_No_ Spew Suckers' would be better," he replied.

"Yeah, I'm sure pregnant women will line up around the block to buy 'No Spew Suckers,'" Cuddy quipped.

"Would you prefer 'No Chunder Candies?'" he asked.

Cuddy gave him a playful shove as she pushed herself off the floor and headed to the kitchen.

"I'm going grocery shopping tomorrow, so write down whatever you want me to get for you," she called out from the kitchen.

House only paused for a moment before pushing himself up off the floor with some difficulty. He grabbed his cane which had been resting on the couch and made his way into the kitchen.

He leaned on his cane in the doorway of the kitching, watching her look through the refrigerator and cabinets to take inventory of what she needed to buy.

"… You want me to come with you?" he asked.

Still holding a cabinet door, she stopped what she was doing and turned her head towards him.

"You want to go _shopping_ with me?!" she asked incredulously.

House shrugged a bit. "… It'll go quicker if both of us go. We can split the list—"

"What's going on?" she asked him, cutting him off.

When he didn't reply, she closed the cabinet and crossed the room to him. When she reached him, she looked up into his bright, cerulean eyes with a crooked smile on her face.

"You did an entire day of Clinic duty, you got me the nausea list, and now you want to go food shopping with me on a Saturday morning when you usually sleep in and wait for me to bring you back bagels and coffee," Cuddy said, pressing him for an answer.

House averted his eyes uncomfortably for a moment. He wished that both Wilson and Cuddy could just accept his recent behavior without trying to analyze all the possible hidden meanings behind it.

And he had no intention of telling either of them about his one therapy session with Cate, because that would open up a whole new can of worms that could never be closed again. But he knew that there was one thing that he could tell her.

And it had the advantage of being part of the entire truth.

"… Stacy told me that when we were together… there was no room for her," House began in a gruff voice.

Cuddy's lips parted a bit, completely stunned that House had just opened up to her in this way.

"S'probably why we never got married or had kids," he added sheepishly.

"…You were also dealing with your leg," she managed to say, still a bit surprised.

"It was like that with her before my leg," House said.

He felt another wave of uneasiness pass through him. Knowing he had come this far, he had to tell her the rest.

"…Just… didn't want to make the same mistake with you," he mumbled.

Cuddy pressed her lips together and smiled, knowing how hard it was for House to admit what he had just told her. She touched his face gently, feeling the scruff of his beard against her palms, her eyes penetrating through his.

"I didn't get together with you hoping that one day I'd be able to change you," she began sincerely.

"I got together with you because I love exactly who you are," she said slowly and evenly.

"Then you're insane," House said.

Cuddy laughed. "Maybe," she admitted with a grin.

House smiled a bit, knowing that if she had laughed, she didn't expect him to reveal any more than he already had.

"So you're saying that you _WANT_ me to sleep in tomorrow morning," he clarified with a jaunty tone.

Cuddy stood on tiptoe, wrapped her arms around him, and pulled him closer to her with a sexy smile on her face.

"Trust me. You're gonna need all the extra sleep you can get," she purred.

House arched his eyebrow a bit, another witty comment about to escape his lips.

But before he could say it, Cuddy silenced him with a passionate, lingering kiss, her lips enveloping his hungrily.

House wrapped his arms around her petite frame, pulling her flush up against his body, deepening their kiss with a carnal passion, his tongue dancing against hers. He slowly backed her up and pushed her ass up against the kitchen counter.

Cuddy slipped his hand underneath his t- shirt, caressing the taut muscles on his chest. He had already found the hem of her pink tank top, his hands exploring her torso.

She gasped loudly as he cupped her voluptuous breasts over her bra. He pulled back from her lips, breaking off their kiss.

"Am I hurting you?" he asked with concern.

"No," she told him, shaking her head frantically, crashing her lips down on his again.

With that, House moaned into her mouth and quickly pulled off her top, tossing it somewhere onto the kitchen floor. Never breaking their kiss, he reached around to her back, deftly opening the closure on her bra.

She squealed in pleasure as he pushed her bra up out of his way, leaving it loosely on her as he took her breast in his mouth. She arched her head back in delight, pushing her breast further into his mouth as his tongue fluttered against her nipple.

'_Mine_,' he said against her breast as he teased her areola with his lips and tongue.

Cuddy's breathing became shallow as he continued his undivided attention on both her breasts. He moaned into her breast as he felt her hand start to work on his zipper.

'_Mine_,' she said with a grin.

House held Cuddy tightly around her waist and began to roughly kiss her neck as she finally undid the button and zipper of his jeans. She stroked his entire length slowly, deliberately, loving the sounds of gutteral pleasure emanating from his lips.

Not knowing how much more he could take, he delved one of his hands down beneath to the waistband of her sweats, finding her wet and more than ready.

As he teased her labia with his finger, Cuddy let out a sound somewhere between a squeal and a moan.

"…Greg…" she managed to say.

He continued to tease her opening with his fingertips, eliciting more primal sounds from her. He could feel how badly she wanted this, and he knew that she wasn't going to want him to tease her for much longer.

He led her over to one of the kitchen chairs and roughly pulled her down to straddle his lap, squeezing her ass possessively as their lips locked on each other's again.

"Wait," Cuddy breathed.

House tried to catch his breath as she climbed up off his lap. She shrugged out of her sweats and her thong, kicking them away from her.

Realizing her bra was still hanging on her shoulders loosely, she ripped that off too and threw it behind her.

He feasted on her with his eyes, ready to take what was his.

She helped him off with his jeans, kicking them away as well. Now completely naked in their kitchen, she eagerly climbed on top of House's lap, placing both of her legs on either side of him, straddling him once more.

His erection already poking through the slit in his boxers, Cuddy wrapped her hand around his shaft and lowered herself down, tossing her head back as he filled her up.

"_Ohhh_!" Cuddy exclaimed as House forcefully thrust himself up into her. She grabbed onto the back of the kitchen chair as she met him thrust for thrust. Both of their breathing became raggedly shallow as the pressure built up inside of them.

Cuddy had no idea how long House was going to last, but she knew that she was close.

Extremely close.

House guided her hips with his hands as he thrust upwards inside her. He became impossibly harder as he watched her writhe in pleasure atop of him. The mere visual of her enjoyment was enough to push him over the edge. And he could feel her folds begin to contract around him as he did so. He knew that she couldn't hold back much longer.

And neither could he.

"Cum for me, baby," House whispered Cuddy's ear.

Cuddy gasped loudly as she felt her orgasm overtake her. She arched back, her hair tumbling all around her as she felt wave after wave crash over her.

House held Cuddy as close as he could to him, latching his lips onto her nipple, groaning loudly as he came inside her.

As both of them slowed their movements, they pulled each other close. They both grinned at each other as they relaxed their breathing. Cuddy then leaned her face against House's bare shoulder.

"… I can't believe we just had sex in the kitchen," Cuddy said in between breaths.

"Would you have preferred the bathroom?" he asked.

TBC...


	14. Chapter 14

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL POSTS!!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE READ, COMMENT AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 14: Please read and comment.**

**NEXT MORNING. SATURDAY:**

At around eight am, Cuddy turned off the water in her shower and wrapped a thick, terry cloth towel around her body.

And just as she did so, right on schedule, she felt nauseous.

She stepped out of the shower as quickly as she could. She barely made the few steps to the toilet before she violently emptied the contents of her stomach into the bowl.

Doubled over on her knees, she took a few deep breaths, bracing herself for the next wave.

But despite the awful physical feeling she was experiencing, she couldn't be happier.

Because nausea meant a good pregnancy.

Still kneeling near the toilet, her hands on both sides of the bowl, waiting for the nausea to either overcome her once again or pass, she thought about how it was going to be a long four weeks before her first scheduled pre- natal appointment with Sobol.

She knew that if she wanted to, she could go into any room in the hospital and give herself an ultrasound if she was that nervous.

But ever since she confessed her fears to House, she was trying to convince herself just to take the pregnancy one day at a time and stop worrying about all the possible scenarios that her body and unborn baby could experience.

She leaned back on her heels and exhaled deeply, closing her eyes, still waiting for the next wave as her still damp skin broke out in goosebumps.

When it didn't come, she pushed herself to a standing position, wiped her mouth with a tissue and brushed her teeth.

Feeling her strength return, she padded into the bedroom, where House was still sleeping.

She chuckled at the sight of him.

He was lying on his side, his face smushed up against the pillow, his mouth gaped open, snoring lightly.

She happily recalled their passionate lovemaking from the night before. How they hadn't made it to the bed the first time and had sex on one of the kitchen chairs.

The second time in their bed wasn't as frantic. It was slower, more tender.

More intimate.

Sometimes, she still couldn't believe how deep her feelings for him were and how he still managed to surprise her after all these years. She knew it was a big step for him to open up to her the way he had last night.

As she threw on a bra, panties, a pair of yoga pants, a cotton tank and some flip flops, she decided that he had earned a late morning to sleep in and that she'd do the food shopping herself. 

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Only a few minutes after Cuddy had left, House's cell phone rang on the nightstand to the tune of "_Mmm Bop_," by Hanson.

House didn't even bother to open his eyes as he clumsily reached for it from the bed.

"_Hmmph_," House mumbled into the phone.

"You never answered my text," Cate Milton declared on the other end.

At first, House didn't recognize the voice. He rubbed his hand over his face slowly, trying to put the voice and what she had said together to help him identify who was talking to him.

"House, are you there?" Cate asked.

"M' here," he mumbled, the voice becoming more familiar to him as he began to wake up.

"You also never show up for our appointment yesterday," she added.

House exhaled through his nose, finally realizing that it was Cate on the other end.

"You woke me up on a Saturday morning to state the obvious?" House demanded, his voice still rough around the edges from sleep.

"I understand if you have a case—" she began.

"I didn't have a case. I just didn't feel like going," he said simply.

Cate paused for a moment.

"...I see. And when were you going to inform me of this fact?" she asked curtly.

"I figured once I didn't show up, you'd put two and two together—"

"I have a 24- hour cancellation policy for appointments. If you don't cancel within 24 hours, I still charge the patient for the appointment," she stated in a clipped, overly professional tone.

At this, House's eyes flew open.

"That's _ridiculous_!!" he stated angrily.

"You want to complain about my billing practices to Cuddy, go right ahead," she retorted in a slightly self- righteous tone.

"_Nice_," House begrudgingly thought to himself. She knew that House had no intention of telling Cuddy anything about meeting her.

"…How much?" he finally asked.

"Three hundred dollars," she replied.

"_FOR A HALF- HOUR?!_" he exclaimed.

At first, Cate said nothing.

House could almost hear her smug little smile over the phone, and it made him sick.

"How 'bout this? You show up on Monday at our regular time and I won't charge you for a _THIRD_ session," she offered with mock courtesy.

"This is extortion," House stated.

"This is _THERAPY_," she said.

"See you Monday, House," she added in a sing- song tone before hanging up.

As he closed his own phone, House wondered if he could forge Cuddy's signature well enough to get her transferred back to the South Pole.

 -------------------------------------------------------------------- 

No more than five minutes later, Wilson was fumbling for his own ringing cell phone on his own night- stand.

Debbie was still sleeping peacefully next to him on her side, facing away from him.

Wilson blinked his eyes a few times and squinted to focus on the caller ID. When he made out the name '**House**,' he closed his eyes and flopped his head back on the pillow.

He opened the phone, not bothering to say anything, having the distinct feeling that if House was calling him this early on a Saturday morning, he most likely would start talking immediately.

"If one of your Cancer patients missed an appointment without canceling within twenty-four hours, would you still charge them for the appointment?" House demanded of him on the other end.

Wilson nodded a bit, taking some pleasure that he was right about what House would do.

"Why are you asking me this?" Wilson asked.

"Just answer the damn question," House told him.

"I wouldn't. But some other doctors might—" Wilson began.

"I didn't _ASK_ about other doctors. I asked about _YOU_," House said impatiently.

"And I just TOLD you what I would do," Wilson reminded him. "What doctor did you see that charged you for a missed appointment?"

House paused, slightly caught off guard that Wilson would ask him that.

"I didn't. It's a hypothetical question," House said quickly.

"No it's not. _No_ question you ask is hypothetical and you definitely wouldn't be calling me this early with a hypothetical question," Wilson said.

"I made an appointment for a dermatologist yesterday," House lied as dismissively as he could. "I have a mole on my back—"

"If you had a mole on your back, you wouldn't waste time with a dermatologist. You'd come right to _ME_," Wilson interrupted him.

"Who did you see?" Wilson pressed.

Wilson listened to the silence on the other end for what seemed like an eternity until House answered him.

"… Cate Milton," House finally said in a gruff voice.

Wilson raised his eyebrows a bit. He glanced over at Debbie, who was still sleeping next to him.

"…You wanna meet for breakfast?" Wilson asked House.

"...Yeah," he replied. 

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Around two hours later, Chase was lying flat on his stomach clad in khaki hibiscus print swim trunks on a cushioned chaise lounge, basking in the sun at one of the secluded, tranquil, elegant pools at Blue Waters Caribbean Resort in St. John's, Antigua.

The temperature was a balmy 83 degrees, a slight breeze coming from the trade winds of the nearby pink sand beach that was only a few yards away from the hotel.

The resort was nestled in a secluded cove of the island. Lush, tropical gardens and tall palm trees adorned the grounds of the intimate British- Colonial style luxury resort. Other hotel guests clad in swimsuits who were enjoying the solar heated pool, the sun, the poolside café and bar, and the built in swim- up bar dotted the landscape as well.

As Sophie deeply massaged his back while she applied sunblock to his fair, smooth skin, a beautiful, lazy smile formed on his face. She was sitting on the chaise with him, wearing an eye catching solid turquoise halter bikini top with a coordinating turquoise and brown floral print bikini bottom with ties on each hip, her hair swept up off her necks.

"You look happy," Sophie commented softly to him as she massaged his shoulders.

Chase reached over and caressed the outside of her bare thigh lovingly.

"Mmmm," was all he said, his eyes closed in bliss.

"You should know I really don't care if you burn. I just wanted an excuse to have my hands on you," she teased.

"When do I get a turn?" he asked with his eyes still closed, his hand trailing higher towards the tie on her bikini bottom.

"You already put sun block on my breasts this morning. And thoroughly, I might add," she said.

"Hey, sun's stronger down here. Can't be too careful," he said, playing with the bow that she had tied at her hip.

Sophie grinned. She leaned her body over towards his ear, her breasts pressing against his back.

"You know, there's a topless beach down the road," she purred, her lips grazing his ear.

"Then what the hell are we doing here?" he murmured.

She laughed as kissed the back of his neck before straightening up once more.

"K, babe. You're done," she told him.

Chase turned over onto his back and propped himself onto his elbows. He reached up and pulled her back down gently by her shoulder. He kissed her, his tongue lightly tracing hers, sending a delicious tingle through her.

"Want me to do your back?" he murmured against her lips.

"Definitely when I come back," she said.

"Where are you going?" he asked softly as his lips continued to brush against hers.

"I have a spa pedicure in five minutes," she told him.

"You're really gonna leave me here all alone?" he pouted, still kissing her.

"I doubt you'll be alone for long," she said, kissing him once more before sitting up.

"Yeah, I'm sure the ladies'll be _flocking_ around me once they see my big cane," Chase muttered sarcastically as he adjusted the chaise to a reclined sitting position.

Sophie darted her eyes over to Chase's cane, which was lying on the floor between both of the chaises they had claimed that morning as she reached into her canvas beach bag to retrieve her black, turquoise and bronze print sarong and her prescription sunglasses.

"They will if you tell them a good story," she said as she stood up to tie her sarong low around her hips.

Chase arched his eyebrows, not exactly certain he had heard her correctly.

"…You're… actually encouraging me to chat up other girls?" he clarified.

Sophie tilted her head a bit with a lopsided smirk.

"Are you planning on bringing any one of these girls back to New Jersey with us tomorrow night?" she asked.

A curt laugh escaped Chase's lips.

"No," he said with a grimace.

"Then I think I can trust you for an hour," she told him with a coy grin.

She leaned over once more to give him another lingering kiss, teasing his tongue with her own, caressing the taut muscles on his bare chest.

Chase gasped slightly against her mouth as he felt her tiny hand graze the bulge in his trunks.

"Have fun, handsome," she murmured before turning around to head towards the entrance to the hotel spa.

Chase's cock twitched in his bathing suit as he watched her hips sway provocatively as she walked away from him.

Feeling more relaxed and happy than he had felt in a long time, Chase grabbed his cane as he got up from the chaise and limped across the blanched brick patio over to the poolside café and bar, where three young and beautiful bikini clad girls were enjoying drinks with umbrellas in them.

As he sat down on one of the soft cushioned stools at the end of the bar, one of the girls, a blonde with voluptuous breasts that were pouring out of her red string bikini turned towards him, her lower lip turned down in sympathy at the sight of his cane.

"Oh, you poor thing. What happened to you?" one of the girls asked him in a sweet and pitying voice.

Chase flashed her a sheepish, yet disarming smile, thinking that it might just be time to take his shark story out for another test drive. 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Around an hour later after her pedicure, Sophie returned back to the pool area and found Chase surrounded by five bikini- clad girls at the poolside café, all of them sipping drinks with umbrellas on them, hanging on his every word.

She chuckled at the sight. Chase apparently hadn't lost his touch for charming the ladies.

Which meant that her plan to rebuild his ego this weekend was working perfectly.

She untied her print sarong and tossed it back into the canvas beach bag she had brought with her. Wearing only her bikini, she strolled over to the poolside café and stood at the bar about a foot away from Chase and his new entourage.

"Caribbean Sunset with ice, please," Sophie told the bartender.

The bartender nodded with a friendly smile and began to pour Malibu Rum, melon liquor and cranberry juice into a tall, ice filled glass. He then topped it off with orange juice and handed it to her.

"Ten dollars American," the bartender told her.

"S'on me," Chase said to the bartender.

The five girls sitting around him all turned their heads towards Sophie, having no idea who she was.

Sophie turned towards Chase, who was blatantly undressing her with his eyes. She smiled bashfully, deciding to play a little game with him and the girls.

"I'm sorry. I don't accept drinks from strangers," she said.

"Then maybe we should get to know each other," he said, thickening his accent a bit, catching on to her ruse.

"… Maybe," she said coyly, peeking at him through her long lashes.

"Excuse me, ladies," Chase said gallantly to the girls flocked around him as he took his cane that was hanging off the bar by the handle and got up off the stool.

Sophie thanked the bartender for her drink as Chase placed his hand on the small of her back and led her away from the bar and the five other girls, who were quite surprised and ticked off.

"Five at once. Not bad," she quipped once the girls were out of earshot.

"My personal record is six," he boasted in jest as they made their way back to their chaises.

"With or without implants?" she asked.

"Does it matter?" he asked, grinning.

"So what'd you tell them?" she asked with interest as she sat back down on her chaise, stretching out her shapely, toned legs in front of her.

Chase sat down on her chaise next to her legs. He tilted his head down a bit, a lock of blond hair cascading over his forehead.

"That I got bit by a shark scuba diving off the Great Barrier Reef," he replied with a proud smile.

Sophie laughed out loud. "Are you serious?!"

"Hey, it works for me," he said, his grin broadening.

Sophie took a sip of her drink from the thin straw the bartender had given her as Chase gently took her legs and placed them over his lap.

"Pretty toes," Chase murmured to her as he glanced down at her deep ruby red pedicure.

"Thank you," she replied softly.

"Are they dry?" he asked.

"Mhm," she said, biting her lip.

Chase caressed her legs with his fingertips.

"Feel like getting wet?" he asked in a husky tone.

"Always," she replied, feeling her cheeks blush at the way his aquamarine eyes were penetrating her.

He took her drink out of her hand and placed it on a nearby tiny glass topped table.

As they got up from the chaise, Chase decided to leave his cane by the chaises. She held his hand and walked slowly and patiently, his limp becoming more pronounced as they made their way over to the pool.

This time, Sophie didn't ask him if he needed any help as he held onto the railing while he made his way down the pool steps.

Following him into the cool, clear water, Chase pulled her closer to him as she wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his back as they waded through.

"I think you're disappointing your new friends," Sophie whispered in his ear, seeing that the girls at the bar were still watching them.

"Sucks for them," Chase murmured as he wrapped his arms possessively around her tiny waist, pulling her tightly against his body and wantonly enveloping her lips with his own.

TBC…


	15. Chapter 15

**WHEW!**

**FINALLY.**

**THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS.**

**SORRY FOR THE DELAY. BETWEEN RL AND NOT BEING HAPPY WITH ANYTHING I'M WRITING LATELY, I HAD TROUBLE AGAIN. :(**

**BUT THANKS FOR BEING SO PATIENT. :)**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

**************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 15: Please read and comment.**

After picking up coffee and bagels from the Campus Coffee shop, House and Wilson headed to the park near campus that House often frequented when he wanted to get away from everything or just wanted to look at young girls jog in sports bras and spandex.

House hadn't been there since he had gotten together with Cuddy, but when Wilson suggested they eat their breakfast there, House agreed almost immediately.

They had found a red painted wooden table that didn't have too many splinters near the jogging trail. As they began to eat, Wilson kept a thoughtful gaze on House, waiting for him to start the conversation.

After several minutes of eating in silence and absentmindedly looking at their surroundings, House still hadn't said anything.

But Wilson knew that he couldn't talk first.

After House wiped a bit of cream cheese off the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand and took a sip of his coffee, he looked somewhat past Wilson out onto the jogging trail, which was Wilson's cue that House was finally about to speak.

"…We've only had one session so far," House said in a gruff voice.

Wilson nodded. "Which means you're going back," he clarified.

"I'm already out three hundred bucks for a session I never went to," House muttered in annoyance.

Wilson chuckled a bit, but didn't comment.

Because he didn't want to say the wrong thing.

For as long as Wilson had known him, House had always come to him whenever he needed to talk. He knew all too well how difficult it was for the older man to open up to anyone and he knew that it was a rare moment when House actually did share his feelings.

And Wilson had to admit that he loved that he was the one that he was the one that House went to, despite everything that had happened between them over the years.

But he also knew that if he didn't press House a little more, that they would spend their breakfast in silence.

"…I think… it's good," Wilson finally said.

"What a shock," House snarked.

"Being out three hundred bucks isn't going to land you in the poor house. You're going back for another session with Cate because you WANT to go back," Wilson pointed out.

House shrugged a bit, looking out at the jogging trail again, bouncing his knee uncomfortably.

"I'm assuming that the reason why you're doing this has something to do with Cuddy and the baby," Wilson said.

House briefly glanced at Wilson before looking away again and nodding in agreement, refusing to elaborate any further than that.

Because in House's mind, there was a lot more to it than that.

But there was no way he was going to tell Wilson any of it.

"You should tell Cuddy," Wilson told him, snapping House out of his current thoughts.

"I should switch long distance carriers and read my emails, too. Not gonna happen," House replied.

Don't you think that she'll be happy that you're in therapy?" Wilson asked.

"She'll be _HURT_ because I opened up to some other woman instead of her," House said.

Wilson didn't know what to make of that. It was possible that House was right, especially considering that Cuddy was already experiencing mood swings this early in her pregnancy.

"I'm surprised you're not crying into your paper napkin because I didn't open up to YOU," House added, taking another bite of his bagel.

A tiny laugh escaped Wilson's lips. "We didn't get napkins," he replied.

House snorted as he continued to chew.

"…Does anyone else know?" Wilson asked him.

House took his time swallowing the bagel and took another sip of his coffee manners. Wilson raised his eyebrow, taking House's sudden newfound table manners as a 'yes.'

"… Chase… saw us talking in the parking lot," House finally said with hesitation.

Wilson arched his brow. "Does he know what you were talking _ABOUT_?" Wilson asked.

House met his eyes again and exhaled through his nose.

"No," House replied.

"Then you _HAVE_ to tell Cuddy," Wilson told him. "Before Chase does."

"He's not gonna tell her anything," House stated, waving his hand dismissively.

"You're that certain of Chase's loyalty to you?" Wilson asked.

"Yes. Just the other day, I asked him to do an exploratory surgery for me and he did it. And he's not even on the surgical staff anymore," House replied.

"So because he did you a _favor_, he'll keep your secret from Cuddy until the end of time," Wilson said, his voice laden with sarcasm.

"He doesn't even _KNOW_ anything. And Chase loves me. He'd never do anything to hurt me," House said.

"I'm not saying he would..." Wilson said.

"But if you continue your sessions with Cate, eventually other people are going to see you leaving her office… and that means people will talk…" Wilson began.

"And if for some reason, Cuddy asked Chase if he _knew_ anything about why people are talking about you and Cate, you think that Chase would jeopardize his new cushy position as Chief of NICU to keep your secret?" Wilson added.

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While House and Wilson were at breakfast, Cuddy was pushing an almost full cart through the aisles of the grocery store with her pregnancy nausea list from Dr. Sobol between her fingers.

She had found everything on the list except for the Red Hots and the Peppermint Candies and a few items that House had jotted down on the bottom of the list in pen.

As she wondered what aisle Beef Jerky could possibly be in, she started to make her way over to the Candy and Baking aisle when she heard a voice.

"Dr. Cuddy?" a female voice called out behind her.

Cuddy turned around to see Cate Milton coming towards her. She was holding a small basket filled with various fruits and vegetables.

"I thought that was you," Cate said with a friendly smile.

Cuddy chuckled. "It's me," Cuddy replied, returning her smile.

"I don't think I've ever seen you in casual clothes before," Cate said.

Cuddy glanced down at herself. She was wearing yoga pants, a tank top and flip flops, and her hair was pulled back into a pony tail.

"Well, now you have," Cuddy said with a slight laugh.

Cate then glanced over at the contents of Cuddy's shopping cart.

"Someone likes Ginger Ale," she joked, seeing that Cuddy had five two- liter bottles of it in her cart.

Cuddy felt a sudden urge to stand in front of her cart to hide her purchases, fearing that that Cate would figure out that she was pregnant merely by the items she had picked.

"Yeah, if you mix Ginger Ale with Vanilla Rum and ice, it's a great summer cocktail," Cuddy said quickly, deciding that if she actually did try to hide her purchases from Cate, it would look a bit weird.

Cate nodded and smiled, knowing full well that Cuddy wasn't drinking any alcohol right now. House had revealed to her in their first therapy session that Cuddy was pregnant.

But she wasn't about to breach House's confidentiality by revealing that.

In fact, Cate wasn't even sure if House had told Cuddy that he was seeing her as a therapist.

"That sounds great. I'll have to try it sometime," was all that Cate said.

Cuddy nodded and was about to push her cart past Cate to continue to the rest of her shopping.

"So how's House doing?" Cate suddenly asked.

At this, Cuddy stopped in her tracks and turned her attention towards her once more.

It wasn't a secret that she and House were together, but the question still took her off guard a bit.

Nobody ever asked her about House was doing.

And then she realized that nobody other than her and Wilson ever actually had the desire to sit down at a table to have a cup of coffee with him.

"He's… fine," Cuddy said hesitantly.

"That's good," Cate replied.

"…Well… I should finish shopping," Cuddy said, hoping that Cate would get the hint that she had no interest in finishing this conversation.

"Sure. Nice to see you," Cate said.

"You too," Cuddy replied, her mind now racing as to why Cate would have such an interest in House.

And as Cate watched Cuddy push her cart towards the Candy and Baking aisle, she was positive that Cuddy had no idea that House was in therapy. 

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Early that afternoon, Chase and Sophie were finishing a leisurely lunch at the poolside café at the Blue Waters Hotel in Antigua.

They had enjoyed a refreshing and sexy swim earlier in the hotel pool, unable to keep their hands off each other as they swam and played in the water together.

Chase popped his second dose of Ultram for the day into his mouth and chased it down with a sip of mineral water with lime. He then leaned back into his curved back wicker chair with a lazy smile.

"I could see us retiring here," Chase said, happily taking in his surroundings.

Sophie chuckled and lifted her legs to rest them on Chase's right knee.

"I'm still a student and you're only thirty- three and you're already thinking about retiring?" she quipped, crossing her ankles.

"Never to early to plan ahead," he replied, a soft smile playing about his lips as he caressed the top of her foot.

Just then, their waitress, a petite and pretty blonde in a white short- sleeved polo shirt and khaki shorts came to their with the check. After she placed it on the table, Chase went to grab it. But Sophie swatted his hand away before he could reach it.

"I'm charging everything to the room, and the room is in my name, remember?" Sophie said as she signed her name and wrote their room number at the bottom of the bill.

Chase laughed and rubbed her legs. "Thank you, sweetie," he said.

"So what do you want to do after lunch?" she asked.

"…Feel like heading over to that topless beach you mentioned earlier?" he asked, popping his eyebrows just a bit with eagerness.

"Always the opportunist," she teased.

"Hey, you're the one who brought it up," he reminded her, flashing her a dazzling grin.

Sophie chuckled uneasily. When she had first brought up the idea of going to the topless beach, she had done so in a joking manner and didn't think much of it.

But now that she saw the obvious excitement in Chase's face about the idea, she knew that he'd be disappointed if they didn't go.

The truth was, she felt very uncomfortable taking her bikini top off on a public beach in broad daylight.

But she had no intention of disappointing him. She had done enough of that on Thursday night.

And when she had surprised him with the trip, she decided that it would be all about whatever he wanted.

"… All right," Sophie said with a shy smile.

"But first I want to make us reservations for dinner tonight at The Cove. It's the best restaurant on the island and the view is supposed to be spectacular," she added quickly.

"Sounds great," he said.

Sophie then got up from the table and kissed Chase lightly on his lips, caressing his cheek.

"I'll be right back," she whispered.

Chase nuzzled his nose against hers. "I hope so," he murmured, brushing his lips lightly against hers once more.

As he watched her walk away towards the outdoor concierge desk, lovely visions of Sophie topless on a stretch of pink sand beach started to enter his head.

His thoughts were rudely interrupted by the beeping of his Blackberry from Sophie's canvas beach bag, which was resting on the chair next to him at their table. He rummaged through the bag to find it.

When he finally did, he smiled in surprise when he read the message:

**"LEAVING IN 2 WEEKS FOR CENT AFR REP.**

**DINNER W/ U & SOPH IN NY B4 I GO?**

**-CAMERON,"**

Chase wasted no time in responding to her text:

**"U BET :)**

**-CHASE," **

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Around a half- hour later, Chase and Sophie had found a spot on a pink sand beach about a mile down from their hotel. They had spread out some hotel towels they had taken from their room onto the sand.

Sophie was hoping that the beach would be desolate, but she had no such luck. There were plenty of sun bathers there, and many of them were women who obviously had no qualms about enjoying the Caribbean sun rays without their bikini tops on.

From Sophie's perspective, there were naked breasts everywhere.

Chase was sitting up on the towel, leaning back against his hands, his left ankle crossed over his right, thoroughly enjoying the scenery.

Sophie laughed nervously. "When in Rome, right?" she joked, suddenly finding herself unable to look in Chase's direction.

Chase smirked. "It's not a law that you have to be topless, you know," he said.

"No, we're here… so… I'll take it off," she said, as nonchalantly as she could.

With that, Sophie drew in a small breath and quickly untied the two ties of her turquoise bikini top and peeled it off her body.

Her torso now completely naked, she then shoved her bikini top into her canvas beach bag before she could think too much about it and wimp out.

Feeling awkward and exposed, she lay down on her back on one of the towels they had brought with them, feeling the rays of the sun burn against her bare breasts, despite the generous amount of sunblock that Chase had put on her earlier that morning. She shut her eyes tight, as if she could block out the own image of herself naked.

Chase lay down on his side, facing her, knowing full well how uncomfortable she felt, wondering how long she lay like that until she would admit it out loud.

She tried to ignore how lumpy the sand felt underneath her back, but after a few seconds, she couldn't. Feeling even more awkward, she sat up and started to smooth out the sand over the towel, feeling her breasts jiggle a bit without the support of her bikini top as she did so.

She felt a sudden reflex to place her hand over her breasts to prevent them from jiggling. An embarrassed flush began to creep up her face.

And Chase noticed this. But he still said nothing.

When she had finally smoothed out the sand to her liking, she lie down on her back against and shut her eyes even tighter, trying desperately to relax.

But the more she tried to relax, the more tense she became.

Chase was still propped up on his elbow, watching her with an amused close- lipped smile on his face.

"You ok?" he asked with an arched eyebrow.

"I'm fine," she replied, hoping she sounded casual.

Chase reached over and placed his hand gently on her abdomen, causing her to flinch slightly as a reflex.

"Would it help you relax if I told you that without a doubt, you have the most beautiful breasts on this beach and most likely on this entire island?" Chase asked her, caressing the skin on her belly with his fingertips.

Sophie laughed, relaxing a bit under his touch.

"I don't know. Some of those girls at the bar had great racks," she said.

"They're not you," Chase said.

At this, Sophie opened her eyes and turned her head towards Chase, who was gazing at her lovingly, still caressing her stomach.

"Nobody is," he said.

Sophie smiled. "You stole my line," she said with affection.

"You stole my heart. Figured it's only fair," he said, barely above a whisper, drowning in her eyes.

"...You're good," she teased softly, feeling a wonderful tingle pass through her at his words.

Chase leaned over to her and kissed her searchingly, his tongue delicately touching hers.

"And you're beautiful… and sweet…" he murmured against her lips between kisses.

"And you didn't have to bring me so close to the equator to try to heal my bruised ego," he said, his lips brushing against hers.

"…Figured the heat might help," she said with an embarrassed laugh.

Still gazing into her eyes, Chase trailed his fingertips along her cheek. As he did so, her smile disappeared and was replaced with an expression of regret.

"I hurt you so much," she said, the corners of her mouth turning down as her lower lip quivered.

"I've hurt you plenty of times," he said softly.

"That doesn't excuse what I did," she said, barely able to get the words out.

"You were only trying to help me down the stairs," he reminded her as gently as he could.

"But… you didn't ask me for help… and… I could have said 'no' to Danny about that game," she said apologetically.

"It was something you wanted to do," he said simply.

"What does that matter?" she said in a tiny voice with a shrug.

"Because _YOU_ matter," he told her sincerely, his aquamarine eyes sparkling as he gazed deeply into hers.

Sophie smiled warmly, her awkward and uncomfortable feelings about being topless dissolving as they were replaced with the feelings of the glorious warmth of the sun against her bare skin and Chase's love for her.

"Now why don't you lie on your stomach so I can put some sunblock on your back?" he asked her sweetly.

Sophie smiled.

"I think I'm ok like this," she said, realizing that she didn't feel self- conscious at all anymore.

TBC…


	16. Chapter 16

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS!!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 16: Please read and comment.**

Some time later, Cuddy returned home with the groceries. When she pulled her car up to her driveway, she saw that House's motorcycle was not in its usual spot by the curb.

"Great," she muttered sarcastically.

She was hoping that she would find a way to manipulate House into helping her bring in the packages with a promise of some sort of sexual favor later that night, but now that he wasn't there, she'd have to do it herself.

But as she got out of the car and headed for the trunk, she thought that based on the way House was acting lately, she probably wouldn't need to manipulate him that much.

She popped open the trunk and took two of the paper bags into her arms, exhaling in annoyance as she calculated that she'd probably have to make at least five trips back to the car to bring everything in.

As she took the first two bags from the trunk of the car, Cuddy kept hearing Cate's words from a few moments ago over and over again in her mind:

**"SO HOW'S HOUSE DOING?"**

If she was in a relationship with anyone else on the planet, the question shouldn't have bothered her in the least.

But this was about House.

And no one that wasn't closely associated with House ever asked about him.

Because no one that wasn't closely associated with House gave a sh1t about him.

Which meant that for some reason, Cate Milton cared about House.

Somehow, she managed to open the door with both bags in her arms and placed them on the kitchen table with a thud. She was about to turn around and continue to bring in the rest of the groceries when she noticed a sheet of paper on the table:

**"WENT FOR BREAKFAST WITH WILSON, THEN FOR A RIDE.**

**WILL SQUEEZE YOUR BODACIOUS ASS LATER.**

**-G,**

**P.S.—BY BODACIOUS, I MEAN ENORMOUS."**

Despite how her mind was racing, Cuddy couldn't help but laugh as she read House's note. His snarks about her ass had been a constant throughout their relationship.

And secretly, she absolutely loved it.

Not that she'd ever let him know that.

But at the moment, she was so preoccupied with her encounter with Cate earlier that she couldn't enjoy the moment.

"_WOULD GREG ACTUALLY CHEAT ON ME_?" she thought to herself.

As soon as she notion entered her head, she dismissed it immediately. Greg had just moved in with her and they were having a baby together.

"_AND WHEN WOULD HE EVEN HAVE THE TIME TO HAVE AN AFFAIR?_" she rationalized to herself as she made her second trip out to her car.

House worked all day and came right home right after the workday ended, all too eager to leave the hospital.

Of course, House spent more time avoiding work than he actually did working. But when he was avoiding work, he was usually avoiding Clinic Duty.

"_AND BY AVOIDING CLINIC DUTY, HE'S AVOIDING RUNNING INTO ME,_" she suddenly thought.

As Cuddy took the next two bundles out of the car, she tried to think if House had been acting different lately, as most men did when they had affairs.

He hadn't joined a gym. He hadn't been reading different books or listening to different kinds of music. He definitely wasn't preoccupied with his appearance or had bought any new clothes, as he wore the same graphic t- shirts, jeans, blazers and sneakers to work.  He also hadn't bought her any gifts out of guilt.

Just then, Cuddy stopped in her tracks in the middle of her walkway.

Because it suddenly occurred to her that House's behavior _HAD_ changed recently.

He spent an entire day in the Clinic and didn't complain.

He had gone to her OB/ Gyn, Dr. Sobol, to pick up a list of foods that would quell her nausea.

And he had even offered to accompany her to the market to buy groceries.

When she had asked House about his decidedly un- House- like behavior, he had told her that he didn't want to make the same mistakes he had with Stacy.

And at the time, she believed it. In fact, it had made her fall in love with him even more that he had opened up to her like that.

But now, as she was putting House's unusual behavior together with Cate's question, she felt as if suddenly everything was falling into place in her mind.

"_STOP IT!_" she told herself, shaking her head roughly. "_GREG HOUSE ISN'T THE CHEATING TYPE_."

She continued up the walk back into the house and placed the two bags she was currently holding next to the other two bags, heading out once again to retrieve the next two bundles.

"_I'VE KNOWN HOUSE FOR THE BETTER PART OF TWENTY YEARS. HE'S NOT AN UNFAITHFUL MAN_," she thought firmly to herself.

As she grabbed the next two bags, thoughts of doubt began to enter her mind once more:

"_HE DID SLEEP WITH STACY WHEN SHE CAME BACK TO THE HOSPITAL YEARS AGO_…" a tiny voice said inside her head.

"_BUT STACY WAS THE ONE WHO REALLY DID THE CHEATING. SHE WAS THE ONE WHO WAS MARRIED. NOT HOUSE_," she silently argued with the voice.

"_DYLAN CRANDALL'S GIRLFRIEND GAVE HOUSE A BLOWJOB IN COLLEGE WHEN SHE WAS STILL DATING DYLAN_," the voice said back to her.

"_THE GIRLFRIEND WAS THE ONE WHO DID THE CHEATING, NOT HOUSE_," she argued again in her mind.

Deciding that she might be going insane if she was actually having a conversation with herself in her head, she shook her head once more to free her of these thoughts and headed back into the house.

Upon re- entering the kitchen again, she glanced at the note that House had left her one more time, her eyes scanning over the fact that he had gone to breakfast with Wilson.

_Wilson_.

If anyone knew if House was having an affair, it would be Wilson.

For a moment, she thought about calling him. But she stopped herself, thinking that if House was still with him, she wouldn't be able to get an answer out of him, anyway.

And she also knew that 'Bros before Hos' wasn't just a catchy saying. Most likely, Wilson would never betray House's confidence, regardless of how close she and Wilson were.

And she had no desire to confront Cate about this, because it would only humiliate her.

And then she had a thought.

_Chase_.

Since House had helped Chase with his ankle, the two of them had become closer in a way. Chase had confided in House about his Vicodin addiction, and House had even hid this from Cuddy and argued that Chase didn't need to go to rehab.

She also knew that House and Chase were in cahoots with the betting pool on Wilson and Debbie's marriage.

Although it was a long shot, there was a chance that House had told Chase something about Cate.

And knowing what she knew about Chase, he would most likely be afraid of losing his new job in the NICU to keep anything from her.

As she headed out to the car to retrieve the rest of the packages, she decided that first thing Monday morning, she'd ask Chase what he knew about Cate Milton. 

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Later that night, close to 8 pm, Chase and Sophie were in their hotel room at the Blue Waters resort in Antigua, getting dressed for dinner. They had reservations at The Cove, a five star Asian fusion restaurant on the island.

They had spent the rest of the day on the pink- sanded topless beach, enjoying the sun, the perfectly temperate waters of the Caribbean sea and each other.

And for the rest of the day, Sophie hadn't bothered to put her bikini top back on.

And Chase took full advantage of this.

Unable to keep their hands off each other, they had kissed and played sexily in the water for hours, bodysurfing together in between.

There were slow, luxurious kisses, passionate frantic kisses and sweet kisses.

And each kiss made Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital, Danny the Intern, and Chase's ankle pain seem further and further away.

And it was wonderful.

As Chase rolled up the sleeves on his white linen shirt, a smile played about his lips as he watched Sophie.

She was standing in the middle of their sumptuous hotel room wearing nothing but a pair of white lace bikini cut panties, holding two halter bra top maxi sundresses on hangers in both her hands, trying to decide between the two of them.

"Which one?" she asked him, her eyes darting back and forth between the two dresses, one black, the other red with a subtle floral print.

"I kinda like what you're wearing now," Chase quipped, popping his eyebrow suggestively.

Sophie tsked. "I'm serious," she said.

"So am I," Chase said with enthusiasm, his gaze lingering on her perky and newly tanned breasts.

"So I take it that you're glad I didn't wimp out?" she asked with a sexy grin.

"Very," Chase replied as he limped closer to her, still rolling up one of his sleeves.

"You got a bit of a burn, though," he added sweetly upon reaching her and taking a closer look at her breasts.

Sophie looked down at herself and saw that there was, in fact, a dark pink hue to her breasts mixed in with the tan.

Chase gently glided his fingertips against the outer curve of her right breast.

"Does it hurt?" he murmured.

Sophie bit her lower lip, feeling aroused at his delicate touch.

"A little," she said shyly.

He then bent his head down to her right breast and brushed his full lips against her nipple softly, causing her to gasp.

As he continued to play with her nipple with his lips and tongue, she closed her eyes and tilted her head back, her arms lowering a bit.

"… Which one?" she repeated breathlessly as Chase kissed his way languidly to her other breast, her arms falling even closer to her sides.

"The long one," he murmured.

By now, both of the maxi dresses were dragging on the carpeted floor of their hotel room.

"…They're both long," she breathed.

"Mmhmm," he murmured, engulfing most of her left breast in his mouth.

She whimpered in pleasure as Chase continued his lovely ministrations, ever so slowly kneeling down, his mouth making its way to her toned, tanned abdomen. Finally resting on both knees, he trailed his tongue around her belly button. Holding onto her hips, his fingers started to hook into her lace panties.

"They're gonna give our table away," Sophie managed to say, not really caring about dinner at this point as the space between her legs tingled.

Chase looked up at her with incredibly stirred eyes, his cock hard in his slacks at the sight of her enjoyment.

"… the red one," he said huskily, tickling her tummy with his scruff. 

------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Several moments later, both of them had caught their breath and the black dress had been tossed onto the bed.

Sophie had put on the red print halter bra top maxi dress, and was putting on a pair of very high heeled cork wedges as Chase fixed his hair in the mirror above the dresser.

"Oh, by the way, Cameron sent me a text. She invited us to have dinner in Manhattan before she leaves for Africa," Chase said, brushing his fingers through the fringe of his bangs.

Sophie paused, her left foot only half- way in her shoe as she looked up at Chase in surprise.

The last time she saw Cameron was at their painting party.

Sophie hadn't been exactly thrilled to see her, especially since Chase had neglected to tell her that he had invited her.

And she was even more irked when Chase showed such concern for Cameron when she announced her decision to go to Africa with Dr. Sebastian Charles to help him run a Clinic he had started for TB patients.

Sophie wasn't exactly sure how she felt about having dinner with Cameron.

But she was sure that she wasn't going to make an issue out of it tonight.

"… Ok," she finally said.

Chase smiled at her as he continued to fix his hair in the mirror, completely oblivious to her thoughts.

 ------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Around a half- hour later, Chase and Sophie were sitting at an outdoor table at The Cove, the best restaurant on the island of Antigua and Barbuda.

Uniquely situated on a cliff top, flaming torches adorned the elegant outdoor patio of the restaurant. From their vantage point at their table, which was next to a very short stone wall, they had a breathtaking view of the Caribbean Sea. Being that it was summer, the starts were just starting to appear as the moon shimmered off the water. The aromatic scents of the water, the air and the sand engulfed their senses.

Having already ordered dinner, they were sipping Pinot Grigot wine out of crystal glasses. Sophie gazed out at the gorgeous view of the beach and the water below them.

But Chase wasn't at all interested in the view.  

"Feel like going dancing after dinner?" Chase suddenly asked her, his eyes sparkling at her.

Sophie snapped her head towards Chase, trying not to look at him as if he was insane.

"They have live music by the hotel bar after ten. Figured it might be fun," he suggested with a smile.

"…Are you... _serious_?" she said as gently as she could.

"Yeah, why not?" he asked with a slight shrug.

"…Are you sure you want to put that much stress on your ankle?" she asked delicately.

Chase reached across the table and took her hand in his, his eyes taking in every inch of her lovely features. She had decided to wear her hair down for the evening, the gentle evening breeze making it cascade around her shoulders.

"I think I can manage a slow dance or two," he said.

Sophie felt herself blush at the way he was looking at her. He looked absolutely gorgeous in his white linen shirt, which accented his hair, his eyes and his tanned chest.

"All right," she said, her heart fluttering inside her at the sight of him.

"I'm really glad you brought me here this weekend," Chase said sincerely to her as he rubbed his thumb against the back of her hand.

Sophie smiled lovingly at him, trying to block out their earlier conversation.

She had no intention of spoiling the romantic mood between them.

But if she didn't tell Chase what was on her mind, it would drive her crazy.

She placed her other hand over his and began to caress the soft skin there.

"…Listen… maybe you should meet Cameron for dinner in the city without me," she began, looking down at her hand in his, avoiding his eyes.

Chase furrowed his brow, confused.

"You don't want to go?" he asked.

Sophie looked up at him with a melancholy smile.

"Robbie, are you planning on visiting the Central African Republic anytime soon?" she asked him.

Chase chuckled. "No," he said with a grimace.

"Then it's probably going to be a long time until you see her again…" she continued.

"If… _ever_," she added tentatively.

"But… she invited both of us—" Chase began.

"She was being polite," Sophie interrupted gently.

"I really don't think Cameron would invite you to dinner hoping that you wouldn't come," Chase said.

Sophie swallowed a bit, steeling herself, knowing that what she was about to say wasn't going to be easy for her.

She gazed deeply into the beautiful blue- green eyes that had taken her breath away several months ago.

"You're not going to be able to say good- bye to her the way you want to if I'm there," she said slowly and evenly, trying to prevent her voice from cracking.

At first, Chase shook his head a bit, not understanding what she meant.

But then, his lips parted and his eyes widened slightly, trying to ascertain if Sophie was saying what he thought she was saying.

Before Chase could say anything, his cell phone rang in his pants pocket.

Completely annoyed, he pulled it out and glared at the Caller ID, which read "**HOUSE**."

"This is Chase," he said curtly into the phone after snapping it open.

He was met with silence on the other end.

"House? Are you there?" Chase demanded in irritation.

"Yeah," House replied curtly.

Chase exhaled. "What is it?" he demanded lightly, still holding Sophie's hand, hoping that House would get off the phone as quickly as possible.

"I just… wanted to… thank you," House muttered.

Chase arched his eyebrow, not sure he had heard House correctly.

"For doing that surgery for me the other day," House explained quickly.

"… Sure. It was… no trouble…" Chase said, completely baffled.

"Well, you're not on the surgical staff anymore so…" House said, trailing off awkwardly.

At that moment, realization hit Chase like a truck.

"What do you need?" Chase said flatly to House over the phone.

"If for some reason Cuddy asks you about Cate Milton, I want you to tell her that you don't know anything," House said in a serious tone.

Chase blinked twice.

"...Ok," he replied simply.

There was silence again.

"Ok," House repeated after a moment before hanging up.

Chase closed his phone and placed it on the table top, staring off into some space in the distance as he mulled over the conversation he had just had with his former boss.

"What was that all about?" Sophie asked with curiosity.

Chase exhaled, meeting Sophie's eyes once more.

"House is having an affair," Chase stated.

It took a few seconds before Sophie processed what Chase had just told her.

"_WHAT_?!" Sophie exclaimed.

TBC…


	17. Chapter 17

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

******************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 17: Please read and comment.**

"House is having an affair," Chase stated.

It took a few seconds before Sophie processed what Chase had just told her. She shook her head a bit, her face contorting into a grimace.

"_WHAT_?!" she exclaimed.

Chase exhaled and leaned forward across the table. Sophie listened intently as he explained to her how he saw them talking in the parking lot, how Cate had rubbed House's arm before walking to her car, how nervous House seemed to be when Chase had seen them, and how he told Chase to stay quiet about the entire thing.

Sophie was stunned.

"He just… called you just now to tell you that he's _sleeping_ with this woman?" Sophie asked incredulously.

"No. He just told me that on the off chance that Cuddy _asks_ me anything about Cate to tell her than I don't know anything," Chase explained miserably.

"This doesn't make any sense. He just moved in with her and they're having a baby together," Sophie pointed out, turning up her palms in confusion.

"Can you think of any _OTHER_ reason why he called me on a Saturday night when he knows I'm away for the weekend to tell me to keep my mouth shut?" Chase asked her.

Sophie stared at him for a moment, racking her brain for another possibility for House's behavior.

But she couldn't come up with anything.

Taking her silence to mean just that, Chase picked up his menu off the tabletop and began to peruse the choices with a somewhat disgusted expression. Sophie did the same, her eyes skimming over the entrée selections, glancing back up at Chase every few seconds to see if he'd actually tell her how he felt.

"The Thai Sea Bass looks good," Chase muttered.

"House was wrong to put you in this position," Sophie stated angrily, slapping her menu back down on the tabletop.

"He didn't put me in any position," Chase said calmly. "He asked me for a favor."

"Does this have anything to do with that exploratory surgery you did for him recently?" Sophie asked pointedly.

Chase's jaw hardened a bit, refusing to admit to her that she was right.

Chase knew that House had alienated almost the entire surgical staff at Princeton Plainsboro, and because of that, House always came to him whenever he needed something.

And that meant more to Chase than he would ever admit to anyone.

"… He _trusts_ me," was all he said.

"So does _Lisa_," Sophie shot back.

Chase looked back down at the menu, avoiding her penetrating stare.

"Are you going to tell her?" she asked him.

Chase laughed out loud.

"No way," he stated as if she was crazy.

"She's your _FRIEND_," Sophie reminded him, not liking his attitude about this entire thing.

"Exactly why I'm not gonna tell her," he replied simply, still looking at the menu.

When Sophie didn't say anything, he glanced back up from the menu at her, meeting her completely disappointed expression. Chase tsked and placed his menu on the table.

"She's pregnant. If she has a miscarriage because of emotional trauma, better it be _House's_ fault than _MY_ fault," Chase explained.

Upon hearing the word "_miscarriage_," Sophie felt a chill coarse through her insides.

But she quickly shook it off, her facial expression not changing in the slightest.

"…How are you going to be able to see her at work every day and pretend you don't know anything?" Sophie asked instead.

"I only really see her when I have Clinic duty. And most of the time, she's in her office anyway," Chase said dismissively, focusing once more on the menu.

Sophie pursed her lips together, exhaling through her nose.

"…I never thought that House was the type to cheat," Sophie said dejectedly.

Chase's eyes glanced up at her briefly.

"…There's no such thing," he mumbled, his eyes darting back down to the menu.

Sophie knew that he was referring to the fact that her brother had cheated on his first two wives and Chase's own one- night- stand with Cuddy in Boston while he was still with Cameron.

"I'm surprised that Jimmy didn't tell me anything. He must know about it," Sophie commented, feeling no need to discuss Chase's last statement at all.

"Why?" Chase asked.

"You really think that House is keeping this a secret from my brother?" Sophie asked him in disbelief.

"He told me not to tell you, because he thought you'd tell Wilson," Chase admitted.

"…Well, if he didn't tell Jimmy, then he must really be ashamed of himself," Sophie said, looking out absentmindedly at their tranquil view of the Caribbean Sea from their table.

Another silence passed between them as Chase ran his fingertips over the base of his wine glass.

"I can't decide if I'm more sorry for Lisa or more disappointed in House," he finally said, focusing on the bottom of the glass.

At this, a tiny chuckle escaped Sophie's lips.

"That's something I'll never understand about you or Jimmy," Sophie suddenly said.

Chase furrowed his brow. "What's that?"

"After all this time… and after everything House has done, you both still think the world of him," she explained.

A tiny, sheepish yet melancholy smile appeared on Chase's face.

But Sophie's expression grew slightly darker.

"After Amber died, my brother was a _mess_. He left Princeton and stayed with me in Boston for a while. We stayed up night after night, talking about everything over and over again. And he blamed House for a long time," Sophie began, her voice somber.

"…But in the end, Jimmy forgave him like he always does," she finished, leaning back against her chair.

"It wasn't House fault that Amber showed up at the bar. And it wasn't House's fault that Amber followed him onto the bus," Chase pointed out.

"If House hadn't got drunk at five in the afternoon alone, he wouldn't have needed to call someone in the first place," Sophie argued.

"Did your brother tell you that House risked his life to save Amber? That I had to do deep brain stimulation on him to help him evoke memories—" his voice rising a bit as the memories of the event came flooding back to him.

"Which you wouldn't have had to do if _HE WASN'T IN THE BAR AT FIVE IN THE AFTERNOON_," Sophie repeated in a slow and even tone.

"…You've never made a mistake?" Chase asked her.

"I've made a _LOT_ of mistakes," Sophie said vaguely, her voice breaking ever so slightly at the end of her sentence.

Chase wanted to ask her what she meant by that.

But she quickly looked out onto the water once more, turning her entire body away from the table refusing to elaborate.

Chase reached across the table to her hand and curled his fingers softly around hers.

"Listen. I don't want this to ruin our holiday over this," he said gently.

Sophie reluctantly turned back to him, her expression warming just a bit at his contrite, delicate approach. He caressed the top of her hand with his thumb and then brought her hand to his lips.

"I don't want to think about House… or Cuddy… or anyone else but you for the rest of the weekend," he murmured against her hand as he placed tiny kisses on her skin.

She smiled even more as his lips trailed down to the inside of her wrist, knowing that she loved it when he kissed her there.

"Now can I still take my girl dancing after dinner?" he asked sweetly against her wrist, taking in the scent of her vanilla and white lily perfume.

She nodded.

"I'd love that," she replied sincerely, deciding that Chase's idea of forgetting everyone else for the rest of the weekend was the right choice. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

At around the same time, Cuddy was in the kitchen, finishing the dishes from dinner.

House was in the living room, watching a rerun of Cuddy's favorite show, a popular medical drama centered around a brilliant yet unorthodox doctor, on the USA network.

Cuddy hadn't mentioned anything about her encounter with Cate that morning in the market or about any of the thoughts that had been occupying her for the rest of the day.

But she didn't know how much longer she could keep silent.

She didn't have any concrete proof that House was having an affair. While he was out, she had searched through all of the pockets of his jeans and sport jackets for any piece of evidence. She even searched through his knapsack. But she found nothing.

All she had to go on was House's sudden changes in behavior and Cate's question.

She had even considered hiring Lucas Douglas, the Private Investigator that House had put on his payroll a while back, to follow him.

But she had dismissed it almost as soon as she thought of it, knowing that there weren't any places that House went that she didn't know about.

"These guys are _IDIOTS_," House suddenly stated out loud, snapping her out of her thoughts.

Cuddy dried her hands on a dishtowel and walked a few steps out of the kitchen. House was staring at the TV as if he wanted to shove his cane through it.

She couldn't help but smirk in amusement when she saw how focused House was on the main character of the show, a world famous diagnostician.

At the moment, the diagnostician was brow beating his team of doctors after one of them had just suggested lupus as a possible diagnosis for their patient.

"Damn right it's not lupus. It's _NEVER_ lupus! These guys get their MD's out of a cereal box?" House demanded of the TV as if they were real people.

"Relax. It's just a TV show," Cuddy said.

"It won't be for long if they keep this new team around. Between the boring neurologist, the chick who has a number instead of the name and the midget plastic surgeon, this show'll be off the air by the end of the season," House muttered.

"So you'll watch something else," she said off- handedly.

"How in the hell did Number Chick bounce back from blindness caused by a brain tumor in one episode?! And they didn't even shave her hair!" House exclaimed.

"The wonders of modern medicine," Cuddy snarked.

"They should just bring back that Australian guy and the pretty brunette," House muttered.

"I'll shoot off an email to Fox first thing on Monday," Cuddy said sarcastically, turning back to the kitchen to finish the dishes.

"You know, it's all _YOUR_ fault for making me watch this. Now I'm hooked," he stated.

For some reason, House's comment made something inside her snap. She stopped in her tracks and turned back around to face him.

"Yeah. I _MADE_ you watch it. I handcuffed you to the couch and I threatened to spank you if you made a run for it," she practically spat out.

House raised his eyebrow a bit at her, about to commend her on her suggestion.

"There's the remote! If you don't want to watch it, change the damn channel!" Cuddy yelled before heading back to the kitchen.

House tilted his head in curiosity as he watched her leave the room. He then clicked off the TV with the remote, pushed himself off the couch and followed her.

Once he arrived at the kitchen, he leaned against the doorway, keeping his gaze on her as she continued to scrub the dishes furiously.

"You're angry," House said.

"No I'm not," Cuddy replied as calmly as she could, almost taking the finish off the dish she was washing.

"You're _LYING_," House stated.

Cuddy inhaled deeply through her nose as she washed off the dish, feeling the churning emotions that she had been experiencing all day start to rise within her.

She put the dish back into the sink and leaned her hands heavily on the counter, as if she needed support to remain standing.

"I saw Cate Milton in the supermarket today," Cuddy began softly.

House felt his stomach rise up into his throat and his chest constrict.

But on the outside, he maintained a serene expression.

"Did she psychoanalyze you based on your produce choices? Sometimes a cucumber is just a cucumber," House quipped, hoping that his comment would diffuse the situation.

Cuddy shut her eyes, using all her strength not to lash out at him again. She knew that if she got too angry that it could affect her blood pressure and possibly her unborn child.

"She asked about you," Cuddy said, turning her head towards him.

Somehow, House managed to smile just as bit, as if he was amused.

"And that's why you're angry?" House asked.

"I'm not angry," Cuddy said quickly.

"I just found it… unusual," she mumbled.

Knowing that he'd better come up with an explanation fast, he limped across the room to her while three or four possible lies flitted through his brain.

By the time he reached her, he had narrowed it down to two.

"And you found that unusual because nobody gives a rat's ass about me," he said, still deciding between the two lies in his mind to tell her.

"That's not true," she said, barely above a whisper, her cheeks starting to flush.

"Not counting you and Wilson," he added.

Having finally chosen one lie in his mind over the other, House waited patiently for her to start the conversation again.

"You've... just been acting so weird lately—" she began.

"And you thought I was having an affair," he said knowingly.

Cuddy nodded, pressing her lips together tightly and closing her eyes. House gently turned her around to face him, tilting her chin up to meet his gaze, ready to tell her the lie he had settled on.

"I referred a patient to her," he lied expertly as he looked into her eyes.

Cuddy furrowed her brow at first. She then laughed and shook her head slightly.

"You really expect me to believe that?" she asked him in complete disbelief, turning away from him and back to the dishes.

"A young girl came into the Clinic with her mother the other day. She had signs of depression and I didn't want to deal with it so I ordered a psych consult," House began, surprised at how easily the lie rolled off his tongue.

Cuddy continued to scrub the dishes, not saying anything.

"The mother was horrified that I suggested such a thing, so I asked her if she'd rather her daughter start cutting herself instead of admit that she might need actual help," House continued.

At this, Cuddy turned towards him with a weary expression on her face, thinking that that was definitely something that House would say to the mother of a patient.

"The mother took it out on Milton, who then yelled at me," he finished, trying to sound annoyed.

"Guess she asked about me because she felt guilty for yelling at me, considering I saved her _LIFE_ last year," House added mockingly for good measure.

A tiny reluctant smile formed on her face.

"…I guess," she admitted.

House pulled her into his arms and held her close as Cuddy nuzzled against his chest, a wave of relief washing over her.

"I really thought you were having an affair with her," she said, her voice muffled against his t- shirt.

House looked down at her and kissed the top of her forehead.

"Cool," he said.

Cuddy looked up from his chest with a grimace. "And why is that cool?"

"I'm banging the hot Dean of Medicine _AND_ the babe psychiatrist? That means I'm the man," he explained.

Cuddy laughed out loud. "Yeah, you're the man," she said.

House grinned slightly. "Now are you gonna in the living room and watch this stupid show with me?" he coaxed her, taking her hand.

Cuddy shrugged. "Depends. Is the hot blonde surgeon in this episode?" she quipped, grinning back at him.

House rolled his eyes in mock exasperation. "I'm sure he has a website you could ogle later tonight," he snarked.

As Cuddy giggled and followed House back into the living room, he didn't know whether to feel relieved or completely ashamed of himself.

He wasn't having an affair, so that part was true.

But he knew that if Cuddy somehow found out what he had been keeping from her, she wouldn't praise him for being partially honest.

TBC…


	18. Chapter 18

**HI EVERYONE!**

**SORRY FOR THE DELAY IN THIS CHAPTER, BUT I WANTED TO GET IT PERFECT.**

**THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS!!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 18: Please read and comment.**

After enjoying their dinner at The Cove, Chase and Sophie were back at the hotel, sitting together on one of the wicker and white cloth cushioned couches that framed the outdoor bar area.

At night, the bar seemed more elegant and exclusive than it was during the day. Ambient lighting and tiki torches illuminated their surroundings, the smell of the nearby ocean adding to the atmosphere.

The bar and seating area were filled with chic yet casually dressed hotel guests milling around, socializing, enjoying drinks and the live music supplied by a local band. The nearby wooden dance floor was also filled.

Chase was holding his almost empty glass of scotch in one hand while the fingertips of his other hand caressed Sophie's arm.

Sophie had already began to feel the effects of the rum concoction that Chase had ordered for her, despite the fact that she had only drank half of it. He pressed his lips delicately against her shoulder.

"That's nice," she whispered, smiling happily and closing her eyes at the feel of his kiss.

"You're so beautiful," he murmured against her skin.

A wry smile formed on her face as she arched her eyebrow coyly at him.

"Even when I'm fully dressed?" she teased.

He smiled against her skin. "Mmm hmm," he said as he started to explore her neck.

Something about the husky tone of his voice and the way his lips trailed slow, lazy kisses up her neck caused delightful little goosebumps to form on her arms.

"Are you cold?" he asked, knowing that she wasn't.

"No," she breathed.  

She was enjoying the nice little haze she was in from her drink plus Chase's soft lips on her so much that she didn't even notice that Chase's other hand had skillfully made its way to the slit on the side of her dress that went up to her thigh.

She squealed out loud when she felt Chase's hand, cold from the iced scotch he was holding, quickly skate across to the inside of her thigh under her dress. She quickly closed her legs, trapping Chase's hand in between them.

"_Oooh_," Chase said playfully, waggling his eyebrows a bit.

"_Stop_ it!" she scolded, unable to keep the grin off her face.

"If you want me to stop, you'll have to open your legs for me," he told her, biting his lower lip eagerly, his hand still in between them.

"Does anyone actually _fall_ for that line?" she quipped.

"You tell me. First time I ever used it," he told her, grinning back at her.

"I think it's only fair to warn you that I'm a little drunk," she told him.

"Makes it easier for me, then," he replied.

Sophie licked her upper lip and opened her legs ever so slightly for him. Seizing the opportunity, he caressed the smooth skin on the inside of her thigh.

Her breath caught at his touch, feeling a blush form on her cheeks, which only made Chase grin even more.

"I'm making you blush?" he asked softly.

Sophie bit her lip, feeling butterflies in her stomach at his question.

"You always do," she admitted.

"I remember how I made you blush that night at O'Sullivans back in October," he said, his hand trailing up the inside of her thigh even higher.

She swallowed, her eyes darting around to see if anyone was watching them. The tingle between her legs was starting to become intense.

"You mean when you came in and started slamming back Scotches and tried to kiss me?" she reminded him, trying to maintain her composure.

He scooted even closer to her on the wicker couch, slowly sliding his hand to her knee and around to the outside of her thigh. The skirt of her long maxi dress fell open a bit, exposing her leg to him, toned and tan from their day in the sun.

"I also remember that you wouldn't let me kiss you that night," he said huskily.

Sophie shook her head slightly. The scent of his cologne and something wonderfully and uniquely him overwhelming her senses.

The butterflies inside her were everywhere now.

"May I kiss you tonight?" he whispered into her ear.

She nodded as best she could, her breath shallowing.

He tilted her chin towards his lips, capturing them with his own in a searching, gentle kiss. He loved the feeling of her lips quivering ever so slightly against his, the way she moaned softly into his mouth when he caressed her tongue with his own.

He wrapped his arms around her, deepening their kiss, feeling as if he couldn't get enough of her.

"Will you dance with me?" he whispered against her lips.

Sophie could only nod again, still feeling hypnotized by his kiss.

Chase reluctantly broke off their kiss and took her hand in his. He led her over to the bar area, where he politely asked the bartender to stow his cane behind the bar, slipping him a twenty for good measure.

She could still feel the blush of arousal on her cheeks as the bartender took both the twenty and the cane with a smile.

"C'mon," Chase said to her, placing his hand on the small of her back as he brought her to the nearby dance floor.

Once they found an empty spot, he wrapped his arms low around her waist, pulling her closer to him once more.

The island- themed music from the band wafted over them. Sophie knew that somewhere in the back recesses of her mind that she knew the words to the song they were playing as an instrumental arrangement.

But she was too lost in his arms to care.

Sophie followed his lead as they found a rhythm together to the music. Chase leaned most of his weight on his right leg, swaying his hips slowly in time with hers, holding her against him, not really moving his feet.

She smiled blissfully as he kissed her temple and caressed her bare back with his fingertips.

She wanted to stay like this forever.

"Do we really have to go back tomorrow?" Chase asked her, echoing her own thoughts.

A tiny laugh escaped her lips. "How'd you know what I was thinking?"

Chase kissed her cheek. "We could open up a practice down here. Treat idiot tourists and tell them that their insurance doesn't cover anything," he suggested.

"Yeah, but I'm not a doctor yet," she reminded him with a smile.

Chase shrugged. "Fourth year med school is pretty much a waste, anyway," he teased.

"Oh yeah?" she asked, arching her eyebrow. "So you'll teach me everything I need to know?"

"I'm a great teacher," he said in a sexy voice that sent a shiver down her spine.

Sophie wound her arms around his neck. "I'm an excellent student," she said, matching his sex tone.

Just then, the crowd on the dance floor started to open up a bit. Chase's face brightened as he saw an incredibly happy couple take the center of the dance floor.

"Look at that," Chase said, jutting his chin in the direction of the couple.

Sophie turned around a bit to see a young bride and groom holding each other and dancing to the music of the live band. The bride, still wearing her simple strapless wedding gown and headpiece, the groom still wearing his tuxedo, the two gazed happily into each other's eyes as they danced, their faces glowing with joy.

"They probably just got married on the beach," Sophie commented, feeling her own smile emerge at the sight of them.

"It's too bad Debbie went berserk with the wedding plans. They could've gotten married here," Chase said.

Sophie pressed her lips together, saying nothing, thinking to herself that she couldn't wait to tell Jimmy and Debbie about how Antigua would be the perfect place for them to elope.

"You think this would be a nice place for a wedding?" Chase suddenly asked her out of nowhere.

Sophie snapped her head around to Chase, completely taken off guard by his question.

Did he know that she had rigged the bet on Wilson and Debbie's marriage?

"Well… yeah, sure. It's… beautiful here," she managed to say.

Chase nodded. "Very beautiful," he echoed, looking deeply into her eyes.

Sophie smiled at his compliment, deciding to herself that Chase had absolutely no idea of her scheme. 

After three more songs, the band congratulated the newlyweds and told the audience they'd be back after a short break. Chase and Sophie clapped for the band and the newlyweds along with the rest of the hotel guests.  

"You wanna go up soon?" she asked.

"You don't wanna dance with me anymore?" Chase pouted, his voice taking on a mocking tone, pretending to be hurt.

"Of course I do," she laughed. "I just thought you might wanna get me out of this dress."

"You thought that I might need to rest my ankle," he told her gently, his lips smirking.

Sophie felt a wave of embarrassment wash over her.

Chase was right, of course, but she thought that she'd be able to fool him with sex.

"…You don't have to prove anything—" she began gently.

"I'm not. I feel really good," he told her sincerely.

Sophie's entire face lit up. "Sweetie, that's wonderful!" she said, placing her hands on either side of his cheeks and kissing him.

"I've actually been feeling less pain all day," he revealed to her after returning her kiss.

Sophie turned down her lower lip in surprise.

"You think it's the weather?" she asked.

Chase shook his head and shrugged. "It's warm in Princeton, too."

"Well, you have been off your feet for most of the day—" she began.

"It's not that, either," he interrupted her softly.

Sophie shook her head, having no idea what he was getting at.

"… Then… what—"

"It's you," he stated simply.

Sophie felt her breath hitch at his words, suddenly noticing how deeply stirred his eyes were as he gazed at her.

He took both her hands in his, swallowing the lump that had formed in his throat.

"I want to take long drives with you," Chase said, his eyes locked on hers.

Sophie narrowed her eyes a bit, having no idea why Chase had said something so random.

"I want to watch every old horror movie with you that you love," he continued, his words slow and even as he rubbed his thumbs against the soft skin on the back of her hands.

Sophie could swear she had heard him say these words to her before.

Chase saw the faint recollection in her face, his heart swelling as he continued.

I _love_ that your cotton bras and panties are finally mixed in with my laundry," he went on, already feeling his heart hammering inside him, an adorable and loving smile on his face.

Sophie's lips parted in realization, suddenly remembering where she had heard this before.

He had said these exact same words to her down on one knee at the poker tournament at Mohegan Sun several months ago.

"…Robbie…" she whispered, her body starting to tremble anxiously.

"_AND I WANT TO MAKE LOVE TO YOU FOR REST OF MY LIFE…BECAUSE MY HEART HAS ALWAYS BEEN WAITING FOR YOU…_" he continued, his voice now quivering, his emotions beginning to overwhelm him.

As Chase slowly and painstakingly got down on one knee in front of everyone on the dance floor, Sophie gasped out loud, her hand flying up to cover her mouth.

The entire crowd seemed to gasp along with her at the sight, including the newlyweds.

Taking her other hand in both of his once more, Chase gazed up at her, his face full of all the love he felt for her in his heart.

"Sophia Wilson... will you marry me?" Chase asked.

She managed a nod as tears of joy started to well up in her eyes.

Chase's own breath caught at her nod and at the happiest smile he had ever seen on her.

"Yes?" he asked, his voice and his face brimming with hope, his smile matching hers.

She nodded again, much more vigorously.

"Yes."

TBC…


	19. Chapter 19

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**AND THERE'S SOMETHING HOT FOR CHASE/ SOPHIE AND HUDDY FANS.... ;)**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

******************************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 19: Please read and comment.**

Around ten minutes later, Chase and Sophie were frantically kissing as they stumbled their way through the door into their hotel room.

Sophie giggled as Chase tossed his cane haphazardly aside somewhere in the room while they kissed.

She shrieked as he scooped her up in his arms and somehow managed to carry her for two or three steps to their sumptuous king sized hotel bed, falling on top of her once they made it there.

"You ok?" she asked, laughing out loud, looking up at him, her hands on both his cheeks as she wrapped her legs around his hips.

He smoothed a lock of wavy brown hair out of her eyes and cupped her face with his hand, a thousand watt smile on his face.

"Never better," he said, tracing her face with his gaze.

They explored each other's lips hungrily, moaning as they kissed. Chase's fingers were already fumbling with the top tie on the back of her halter bra top maxi dress. Sophie quickly worked open the buttons of his white linen shirt, slipping it off his shoulders.

Finally managing to undo the tie on the back of her dress, he peeled down the top, freeing her breasts from its confines. He wasted no time gripping her right breast possessively, greedily engulfing one of her nipples in his mouth.

"Ah!" she cried out in pain as his mouth clamped down on her, recoiling slightly, causing Chase to let go.

"Did that hurt?" he asked worriedly, his eyes darting from her breast to her face.

"A little," she hissed, her heart still racing with arousal despite the sudden shock of pain she felt.

Chase looked back down at her nipple, noticing that it was a rather dark shade of red.

"Oh baby… your nipples are sunburned," he said forlornly, lightly tracing the outline of her.

"It's ok," she said breathlessly, raking her fingers through his hair, trying to encourage him back to her breast.

"But… I don't want to hurt you—"

"Don't you _DARE_ stop," she told him firmly.

Chase's eyes widened a bit a first. But then a sexy smile formed on his lips, his cock twitching in his slacks.

"Yes, ma'am," he said dutifully. 

But instead of vigorously suckling her, he traced around the edge of her areola lightly with the tip of his tongue, occasionally gliding it delicately over the peak of her nipple so as not to hurt her.

"Ooh," she breathed, feeling only pleasure as she wrapped her legs tighter around his body, arching back on the bed, every nerve ending on alert.

His lips brushed up to her collarbone and then back down between the valley of her breasts to her abdomen, her body arched up to him as an offering, begging for more.

He pressed his pelvis against hers. They both whimpered at the feeling of his erection against her.

She ran her hands slowly, decadently over his bare chest and shoulders, thoroughly enjoying his tanned, toned muscles under her fingers and palms.

As she pulled him back down to her, he hiked up the skirt of her dress, sliding his hands up the side of her thighs.

He looked deeply into her eyes, which were sparkling with passion for him. He brushed her lips with his tenderly over and over again. As he ground his cock against her, their tender kiss became intense, holding each other as if they would never separate.

Their hands traveled all over their bodies as they kissed, wanting to experience every inch of each other. Her dress still on, he finally reached in between their bodies. He slipped his fingertips underneath the front her white lace bikini cut panties. She squealed and arched at his touch.

He watched her face as he parted her wet folds with his fingers. She moaned louder as he found the elusive spot he wanted so badly, his heart hammering wildly in his chest at he watched her respond to the pleasure he was giving her.

"Oh… Robbie, don't stop… please…" she pleaded, her eyes fluttering closed.

He continued his lovely ministrations, latching onto her nipple once more as softly as he could, not wanting to cause her any pain.

His touch between her legs became more intense. She felt herself bloom as she tipped over the edge, her name on his lips as she did so.

The need to plunge into her wetness overwhelmed him.

He kissed her again. She could barely kiss him back.

A lazy smile formed on her face while they kissed as she basked in the afterglow of her orgasm. She reached up and caressed his face.

"…wow…" she whispered.

"I love doing that to you," he said against her lips.

"…Let me make you feel good, too…" she began.

"Not yet," he murmured.

"But I want to—"

"I want more," he interrupted, his voice thick with desire.

He trailed his lips down her body, slowing inching his way to his sweet, intended destination. Sophie tensed in eager anticipation, watching him.

Once he got below her belly, he peeled off her scrap of panties past her legs and feet, tossing them somewhere on the floor. She spread her legs eagerly for him. He slowly made his way to her inner thighs, causing her to writhe at the touch of his lips as he got closer to the only place he wanted to be.

His tongue traced her moist petals. She arched her back higher and grabbed onto the sheet, whimpering. Her sweet taste on his lips and tongue, he opened his eyes to watch her moan and squirm with pleasure, his cock straining against the inside of his slacks.

"Oh… _god_…" she managed to say, the incredible tingle that only he could give her starting to overtake her once more.

Her second orgasm hit her right between the eyes, seeing stars. As he lapped up her wetness, he knew that he couldn't wait much longer.

Finding it harder to catch her breath this time, Chase inched up back to her eye level on the bed, stroking her abdomen, licking his lips.

"You're so delicious, baby," he told her in a husky voice next to her ear.

Slowly opening her eyes, she could only manage a weak smile, her breathing still a bit shallow.

She tried to reach down to stroke him, but he grabbed her wrist gently, stopping her.

"Please… let me…" she protested.

"I wanna be inside you," his voice breathy and low, his accent thickened with arousal.

"I want to touch you…" she whimpered. "Please…"

"Let me feel you all around me, Sophie."

She nodded. "Mmmh," was all she could say.

He lifted himself off her, kneeling on the bed. She helped him unbutton and unzip his slacks, pushing them and his boxers down past his hips. After shrugging out of them, he took her dress down the rest of the way.

As he climbed on top of her once more, Sophie moved to roll Chase on his back, but he held her down, stopping her again.

"Honey, what are you doing?" she asked, confused, her voice still breathy from her second orgasm.

"I want you under me," he said gruffly.

She rubbed his chest. "But… your ankle," she said, knowing that he'd be much more comfortable if she was on top as they usually made love.

"I'll be fine," he reassured her.

She locked her gaze onto him once more and nodded.

She spread her legs for him again. He entered her, thrusting into her slowly once, groaning at the feeling of how tight and wet she was around him.

Their bodies joined together, he then wrapped his arms around her back and rolled her right side slightly off the bed so most of his weight was on his own right side. Instinctively, she wrapped her right leg around his hip.

Using the right side of his body for leverage, he thrust in and out of her deeply, slowly.

She moaned and breathed heavily with him at every thrust, holding onto him desperately. His cock became impossibly harder as he pumped into her over and over, knowing it wouldn't be long.

Their position gave her heightened friction where she needed it most. Their mouths gaped open, gasping for air.

Once again, he felt her velvety muscles contract, sucking him into her. He couldn't hold back any longer.

He cried out as he exploded inside her with such a force that he felt his entire body quiver. He buried his face in her neck and her hair while he rode out his orgasm. She quickly tumbled after him, letting out some unintelligible sound.

As their passionate rhythm slowed, Chase felt her legs go weak against his hips as they fell to her sides. He gently pulled out of her and collapsed onto the bed next to her, holding her close to him. He kissed her softly, over and over, never taking full possession of her lips .

Before they knew it, they were asleep in each other's arms.

********************************************************** 

At around the same time, House's erection was at full salute as he was pressed up against Cuddy's supple body in their bed. Her legs were wrapped high around his back as they kissed wantonly.

They were underneath their thin cotton summer quilt together. House's jeans had been off for a while and he had already peeled off the yoga pants she had worn all that day, only too happy to discover a hot pink lacy thong underneath.  "Promise me that no matter how big your a$$ gets that you'll wear thong panties for the whole pregnancy," he told her, his lips trailing across her cheek and her jaw.

Cuddy was breathing heavily as her passion for him rose within her.

"…I don't think… they make maternity thongs..." she breathed.

"Then they're _IDIOTS_," House stated.

They both rose their bodies off the bed in unison. He quickly found the hem of her tank and pulled it off her body over her head.

"Oh _GOD_," House groaned at the sight of her more than ample breasts spilling over her matching bra.

He then buried his face between her breasts, cupping both of them, over her bra, loving how voluptuous they felt in his hands. She gasped at the feel of his scruff against her soft, sensitive skin.

"…So… you're not angry at me?" Her alto, throaty voice was still breathy and full of lust.

House lifted his face out of her breasts, shooting her a quizzical look.

"Does it _LOOK_ like I'm angry?" he asked, before delving back in.

"…I accused you… of having an affair," she said haltingly as House slipped one of her bra straps off her shoulder.

"But I'm _not_ having an affair," he said, his lips trailing across her collarbone.

She slid her hands up underneath the back of his t- shirt, lolling her head back as he tasted her skin at the hollow of the base of her throat, reaching behind her back to deftly unhook her bra.

"Still… the only reason… that I thought you were being so nice… was because you were having an affair…" she said as he peeled her bra of her body.

"If I say that I _AM_ having an affair, will it get your panties off that much quicker?" he asked, lifting up off her body a bit, tossing her bra somewhere behind him.

He quickly pulled his own t- shirt off and lay back down on her. He rolled both of them onto their sides so as not to put too much pressure on her slightly swelled abdomen.

He groaned in pure pleasure as their naked torsos made contact again. He gripped her leg underneath her knee and wrapped at around his waist so he could be even closer to her.

Grabbing her luscious, toned ass, he thrust his hips against her. Even through her thong, the friction was intense for both of them. She thrust back, wanting so much more.

But even as he teased her erect dark- rose colored nipple with the pad of his thumb, her conscience just wouldn't stop nagging her.

"That doesn't bother you? …That my first reaction… was to be that suspicious of your motives?" she asked him.

"I let things roll off my back. I'm really a duck. Now shut up," he told her.

Still aroused and breathing heavily, Cuddy arched her eyebrow at him. House rolled his eyes and lay onto his back on the bed away from her, exhaling deeply.

"What? I didn't say stop," she protested, rolling over onto her elbow.

"Arguing as foreplay kills the mood unless we're at work," he muttered, draping his arm across his eyes in an effort to calm down.

A chuckle escaped her throat as she rolled on top of him, nestling her body against his. She caressed his chest with her fingertips, through his chest hair.

"We're not arguing," she said softly, kissing his nipple. "We're talking."

"You ever listen to the dialogue in a porno?" he asked.

"… No," she admitted with a grimace.

"Me neither. Because it's _LAME_," he stated.

Cuddy took a deep breath and let it out. She then rest against his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

"How long have we known each other?" she asked him.

"Twenty years," he replied.

"And in those twenty years, have you ever let _ANYTHING_ just roll off your back?" she asked, knowingly.

"A puzzle, no. An insult is different," he clarified.

"So you WERE insulted," she clarified.

House took his arm off his eyes and finally gazed down at her.

She had that knowing look on her face that she always did when she thought she had figured him out.

He brushed a stray curl away from her lovely face, thinking how to answer her.

The truth was, he _WASN'T_ insulted.

He was just so happy that she believed his lie about referring a patient to Cate Milton that he didn't even care that she had accused him of having an affair.

But he knew that if he wanted to get laid tonight, he'd better let her think that she was right about his feelings.

He plastered a sheepish look on his face that his emotions didn't reflect.

"… Yeah, I was," he lied.

She inched up on the bed a bit higher and continued to rub his chest.

"I'm so sorry," she said.

House shrugged. "It's all right. I deserved it."

"No you didn't," she said. "I should've never accused you of cheating on me."

He turned his lips up at the corners in the most innocent way he possibly could.

"You know… you could make it up to me…" he suggested.

A slow, coy smile played about her lips.

"I was planning to," she told him in a sexy tone. 

House's eyes trailed over the curves of her naked breasts and belly as she seductively sat up on the bed. She then climbed on top of him and straddled his hips. Her hair cascaded a bit down her shoulders as she displayed to him what was his for the taking.

He placed his hands on her slightly more rounded hips, his cock twitching against her core, his erection making a comeback.

Still in her thong, she began to rock against him, slowly, deliberately. He thrust back against her in time with her rocking, finding a wonderfully erotic rhythm together.

She shifted slightly and reached down in between the slit of his boxers, freeing his erection. She stroked his shaft, making him groan over and over again.

"God, Lisa…" he grunted.

"More?" she asked in a seductive tone, becoming even more aroused at his response.

"Yes…"

She stroked him harder from base to tip. His hips bucked against her tiny hand as he reached up to possessively claim her breasts as his own.

She moaned eagerly at how much he wanted her. She loved how after all this time, he still lusted after her so deeply.

She peeled her own panties aside and lowered herself down onto his erection, both of them groaning loudly as she enveloped all of him.

He moved his hands down to her hips, grabbing onto them, encouraging her on. She met him thrust for thrust, her lips parting as he pushed even deeper up into her.

He arched back onto the bed, forcefully cumming inside her, thinking he was the luckiest bastard alive.

She quickly followed after him, secure in the knowledge that he loved her and only her, having no idea what he was hiding from him.

As she collapsed onto the bed next to him, he could feel his leg start to throb.

He quickly dismissed it as pain from strenuous activity, refusing to entertain the notion that it could possibly be from guilt.

 ********************************************************** 

The next morning, at around 9 AM, Chase was scrolling through the TV channels, looking for the local weather as Sophie lay on his chest, still sleeping peacefully in his arms.

He had been awake for a half- hour, having taken his first dose of Ultram upon waking to stave off any possible pain.

They were both still naked, as they had fallen into a deep sleep after making love the night before.

Once he finally found the weather channel, he rested the remote on the bed next to him and lay his cheek gently against the top of her head, feeling happier than he could ever remember.

He hadn't even planned on proposing to Sophie last night while they were dancing in the hotel bar.

But when he saw that newlywed couple who had come off the beach and onto the dance floor, the impulse struck him like a bolt of lightning.

He nuzzled his cheek against her hair as she slept, thinking to himself how no one had ever cared about him enough to go through the trouble of planning a surprise vacation to make up for hurting his feelings. She had made the entire weekend all about him, including encouraging him to flirt with other girls just to give his ego a boost.

She had even taken him to a topless beach, even though it was the last thing she wanted to do.

No one had ever loved him like she did.

He felt her stir in his arms a bit, a soft murmur escaping her lips. He wrapped his arms around her even more and kissed her forehead.

She opened her eyes and looked up to see his loving smile as he brushed the hair away from her face.

"Hi," he said, barely above a whisper.

She smiled back. "Hi," she replied, matching his soft tone.

"You sleep well?" he asked.

"Mmm hmmm," she said happily, still a little hazy from sleeping and from the events of last night.

He kissed her lips lightly and rolled gently on top of her. She caressed his thin layer of dark blond stubble on his jaw as a lock of hair fell in his eyes.

"Did you have any idea that I was going to propose to you?" he asked her.

She shook her head. "None," she replied, gazing adoringly up at him.

"… Did you?" she asked.

"… No," he admitted with a sheepish smile.

She laughed at that, raising her head up from the pillow a bit to kiss him.

"Will you still marry me?" he asked softly, feeling himself getting lost in her eyes.

"Yes," she said, still smiling.

"… So what do you want to do today?" she asked him.

"First…" he began with a soft kiss to her lips. "…I wanna take my girl out to breakfast…" he said, kissing her again.

"Then… I wanna buy my fiancée an engagement ring."

TBC…


	20. Chapter 20

**HI EVERYONE!**

**SORRY I DIDN'T POST YESTERDAY. WANTED TO TAKE MY TIME WITH THIS CHAPTER.**

**AND HERE IT IS!! :D**

**THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS!**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 20: Please read and comment.**

"So which one?" Chase asked.

Chase and Sophie were seated on cushioned straight- back chairs in front of an illuminated glass case in Tiffany, Antigua and Barbuda. Inside the case, dozens of diamond engagement rings sparkled brilliantly in front of them.

"Oh god, I have no idea," Sophie admitted with a nervous laugh, her eyes glowing with excitement and with the reflection of the rings in front of her.

He smiled warmly at her. "Whatever you want, baby."

Sophie pursed her lips together, her eyes darting back and forth at the rings while the salesman behind the counter, a gentleman in his mid fifties, waited patiently for her to choose one.

She finally honed in on a round solitaire diamond in a platinum bezel setting.

"Can I see that one?" Sophie asked, pointing to the ring that had caught her eye.

The jeweler nodded and took out the ring she had chosen, handing it to her. Chase gently took it from her and slipped it onto her left ring finger. Sophie, feeling her heart thumping in her chest, drew in a breath as he did so.

They gazed up at each other shyly, enjoying the moment between them.

"That's an absolutely gorgeous setting. Simple, elegant," the jeweler said.

"What about the stone?" Chase asked, narrowing his eyes a bit as held her hand in a way that allowed him to critically examine the ring, not having any idea what he was supposed to be looking for.

"One carat, D color, VVS2 clarity. You won't find a better diamond than that," the man replied confidently.

"And all Tiffany Diamonds come with our company's full lifetime warranty and a certificate from Tiffany that certify their authenticity and integrity," he added.

"Hm," was all Chase said with a nod, still trying to look like he was an expert gemologist.

The man smirked. After being in the jewelry business for over thirty years, he had lost count how many times he'd seen young men trying to pretend they knew anything about diamonds when they came in to buy engagement rings for their girlfriends.

But he didn't say anything.

Chase glanced at the placard that was propped up on the top of the glass case, which described the "Three C's of diamonds: Cut, Color and Clarity. Chase noted that a designation of "D" was the highest quality color, but that VVS2 stood for "very very slightly included."

"It's not flawless," Chase commented, looking up a bit suspiciously at the man.

"Diamonds are just like people, sir. They have flaws," he replied with a shrug, giving Sophie a little wink.

Chase chuckled a bit at that, wondering how many times the man had used that line on a customer before.

"A bezel setting isn't a typical design for an engagement ring," the man said. "But that's what so great about this one. It's a little different," the man said.

Sophie smirked. "Like me."

Chase smiled at that.

"Do you like it?" he asked her.

"I _love_ it," she said, barely above a whisper.

"That ring looks even more radiant with a two- carat stone," the man said, deciding that it was time to take his pitch up a notch.

"No, this is perfect," Sophie stated.

Chase raised his eyebrows at her. "You sure? I'll get you the bigger one."

"I don't need a big diamond," she assured him.

The salesman leaned forward a bit with a friendly, yet amused expression.

"Miss, this is your engagement ring. It's not about what you need, it's about what you WANT," the man said. "And if he's willing to buy you the bigger one, I wouldn't be so quick to say 'no.'"

Knowing a hustle when she heard one, she smiled back at the man.

"I already have everything I could possibly ever want," she told him.

Chase beamed.

"We'll take it," he told the man. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

At around seven pm that evening, Wilson and Debbie were waiting at the baggage claim area at Newark Airport for Chase and Sophie. The digital display on the big board indicated that their flight had just landed around ten minutes ago.

While Debbie scanned through the throngs of people in the crowded airport, Wilson hung back a bit, his cell phone attached to his ear.

"You told her _WHAT_?!" Wilson exclaimed loudly into the phone.

On the other end, House pulled the phone away from his ear and winced.

"I have Verizon. You don't have to shout," House told him.

"How could you lie to her like that?!" Wilson demanded.

"It wasn't a lie," House clarified. "I'm not having an affair with Cate."

"How is making up a lie that you referred a patient to her any better?" Wilson asked incredulously.

House paused for a moment, not having an immediate answer to that.

"I didn't call you to ask for your moral objection to what I told her," he said instead, deciding that deflecting was a better answer than anything else.

"I know. You called me to make sure I got your _story_ straight in case she asks," Wilson retorted in disgust.

"So you think you can do that? Or do you need me to write it on a Post- it for you?" House asked with impatience.

Wilson exhaled hard. "How long do you think you're gonna be able to keep this up?"

"Indefinitely," House replied.

When Wilson didn't reply, House rolled his eyes, imagining Wilson's mouth agape in shock on the other end.

"Cate's bounded by confidentiality, Chase would never put himself in a position where he was the villain, and you love me too much. I've got nothing to worry about," House explained confidently.

Just then, Wilson spotted Debbie waving down Chase and Sophie, who were coming towards her with their bags. She then turned towards Wilson and waved him over as well.

"I'll talk to you later. When's your next therapy session?" Wilson asked House as he started to make his way over to the three of them.

"Monday. Why?" House asked.

"As long as your there, you might want to explore how to fix your moral compass," Wilson told him.

"The warranty expired years ago," House replied, not missing a beat.

Wilson sighed in exasperation before hanging up without another word.

He then plastered a smile on his face as he got closer to Debbie, Chase and Sophie.

"You both look great!" Wilson said, kissing Sophie on her cheek. "Looks like you had good weather," he added, admiring their deep tans.

"Wonderful weather," Sophie replied with a huge grin on her face.

"I've never been to Antigua. I hear it's so beautiful," Debbie said wistfully.

Chase and Sophie exchanged knowing glances. "… Well… this fall, you're going to see for yourself how beautiful it is," Chase began.

"… Why this fall?" Debbie asked in confusion.

Sophie could barely contain her excitement as she held out her left hand for her brother and his fiancée.

"…Because that's when we're having our wedding there," Sophie replied, biting her lower lip, her smile overtaking her entire face.

It took a few seconds for Wilson to process what he was looking at. Slowly, his jaw dropped and his eyes practically bugged out of his head. Debbie grabbed Sophie's hand and yanked it towards her.

"**_OH MY GOD!!!_**" Debbie shrieked out loud, causing several people around the baggage claim areas to turn their heads in their direction. 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

**LATER THAT EVENING**

**CHASE AND SOPHIE'S HOME:**

After enjoying take out from Tony's Restaurant, Chase's favorite Italian place, Sophie and Debbie were cleaning up in the kitchen while Chase and Wilson were having some after- dinner beers out on the deck.

"I can't believe he just asked you to marry him of nowhere," Debbie said as she shoved some used paper plates into the trashcan in the kitchen.

"I don't think Robbie can believe it either," Sophie joked, still wearing the smile that she had on her face since Saturday night.

"So now that the guys aren't around, we can talk about the wedding. You two obviously set a date," Debbie stated with enthusiasm.

Sophie nodded. "October 15," she said as she starting packing away any leftovers in Tupperware containers.

Upon hearing this, Debbie's smile faded. She stopped cleaning and stared at Sophie.

"…_October 15?_" Debbie repeated. "Of _this year_?"

Sophie nodded happily. "We met in October, so we thought it would be kinda romantic to get married then," she explained. "We're having it at the same place we stayed this weekend. The hotel takes care of almost everything—"

"Our wedding is a _week later_," Debbie interrupted curtly.

"You set a date? That's terrific!" Sophie said happily. "Where are you having it?"

"The Cayman Islands," Debbie answered dismissively with a wave of her hand. "Sophie, you can't get married a week before I do."

"… Why not?" Sophie asked, not understanding why she was having such a problem with this.

"Because we're inviting your family, that's why," Debbie said with a hint of irritation.

"… So?" Sophie repeated, still confused.

Debbie exhaled in exasperation. "People aren't going to want to travel to the Caribbean two weeks in a row," she explained, as if she was talking to a child.

Sophie paused for a moment, not liking Debbie's condescending tone.

"You don't know that—" Sophie began.

"You really think that your family is going to attend James's _FOURTH WEDDING_ if they have to get on a plane again seven days later?" Debbie interrupted again, this time a bit more angrily.

"You _HAVE_ to reschedule," Debbie stated firmly.

Sophie's first impulse was to tell Debbie to go fuck herself and that she had no right to tell her when she could and couldn't have her own wedding.

But then she thought about her brother.

He had finally gotten over Amber, moved on with his life and found someone.

And she didn't want to mess that up for him by being a shrew to his fiancée and future sister- in- law.

"… I'll… talk to Rob about it," Sophie finally said softly.

"Good," Debbie said as she turned back to cleaning the kitchen. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------- 

At the same time, Chase and Wilson were relaxing in chaise lounges on the deck.

"So you're gonna be my brother- in law, huh?" Wilson asked, tipping back what was left of his third beer.

"Yep," Chase replied, popping the "P" at the end of the word, who was already into his fourth.

Wilson chuckled. "I guess I could do worse. Sophie could be marrying House," he drawled, thoroughly amused with his less than sober self.

A slightly drunken laugh escaped Chase's mouth.

He then looked over at Wilson, stared at him for a moment, and the two of them started laughing uncontrollably at the thought.

"You know, if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't even be with Sophie," Chase said once he started to calm down.

Wilson was still laughing a bit. "Why do you say that?" he managed to ask.

"You don't remember that you gave me the key to her apartment so I could break into her place to fill her apartment from floor to ceiling with her favorite flowers?" Chase asked.

"Yeah, I remember," Wilson said with a snort.

"You also convinced her to give me another chance after my surgery," Chase reminded him.

Wilson nodded slowly. "That I did."

Chase rolled over onto his side and leaned against his elbow to face Wilson.

"Why'd you do that?" Chase asked.

"Because she loves you and you make her happy," Wilson said as he leaned over in the chaise and placed the empty beer bottle down on the deck next to him.

He then sat up and leaned his back against the chaise once more.

"Which… you'd better continue to do," Wilson told him in an even tone.

Chase narrowed his eyebrows.

"…Why… do you think I wouldn't?" he asked, guardedly.

Wilson blinked once and sighed.

"People don't mean to make other people miserable, Chase," Wilson began.

"…They just do," he finished.

Chase then watched Wilson lean over on the other side of the chaise and take out another beer, open it with a nearby bottle opener that was resting on the small table between their chaise and pop the top off.

As Wilson took a long drink from the bottle, Chase grimaced.

"This… isn't about me, is it?" Chase asked.

Wilson finished his swig, wiped his lips with the back of his hand and placed the beer down on the small table.

"What did House tell you about Cate Milton?" Wilson asked.

Chase froze, feeling like a deer caught in headlights, a sense of panic rising within him.

"_WILSON MUST KNOW ABOUT HOUSE'S AFFAIR_," Chase thought to himself.

"… He… told me to keep my mouth shut… and if Cuddy asks me anything about Cate, that I should say that don't know anything," Chase replied as calmly as he could.

Wilson let out a disgusted laugh and shook his head.

"…Do you think he should tell Cuddy about it?" Chase asked.

Wilson sighed. "House thinks that if he tells Cuddy, it'll break her heart," he replied with a heavy heart.

"Well, I agree," Chase stated.

The two men sat there in silence for a few moments, looking ahead of them into the night. The ambient light was reflecting off of the pond that Chase and Sophie had near their small backyard. The sound of the fountain in the middle of the lake was soothing, almost hypnotic.

Wilson thought about his earlier phone conversation with House that evening, thinking that if House was making this much of an effort to hide his therapy sessions with Cate from Cuddy, then maybe he was really serious about it.

"…Maybe… it'll be good for them," Wilson suddenly said.

At this, Chase snapped his head around to face Wilson once more, stunned.

"How could this possibly be _GOOD_ for them?" Chase asked incredulously.

"House is obviously doing this to make his and Cuddy's lives better," Wilson said.

Chase blinked once.

"…He _IS_?" Chase asked in shock.

"I'm not saying that he's going about it the right way… but the fact that House is actually opening up to someone else is a big step," Wilson commented with a shrug, taking a sip of his fourth beer.

Chase couldn't believe what he was hearing come out of Wilson's mouth.

"You're _CONDONING THIS_?!" Chase sputtered.

"It's a lot better than him OD'ing on his pills or drowning himself in a bottle of Bourbon," Wilson replied.

"_YEAH, IT'S _MUCH_ BETTER FOR HIM TO SCREW AROUND ON THE SIDE WHILE HIS GIRLFRIEND AND BOSS IS PREGNANT WITH HIS KID_," Chase thought to himself in disgust.

"So I hear you're meeting my parents next week," Wilson said, changing the subject.

At first, Chase didn't say anything. He still couldn't wrap his head around the fact that Wilson seemed to think that House having an affair was a good idea.

"…Yeah. They're coming to see the house…" Chase finally said.

Wilson started to tell Chase a little about his parents and how they haven't even met Debbie yet and how maybe they should all go out to dinner next weekend.

But Chase wasn't listening.

He was still trying to make sense out of Wilson's attitude.

As Wilson continued to babble on, Chase thought about what Sophie told him over the weekend—how Wilson forgave House after Amber died.

And that no matter what House had done over the years, both he and Wilson still respected him.

He knew that House trusted him to keep his secret about Cate. And he really had no desire to get on Cuddy or House's bad side. They could both make his life miserable.

But for some reason, the fact that Wilson was actually all right with House cheating on Cuddy made Chase start to reconsider keeping his mouth shut.

TBC…


	21. Chapter 21

**HI EVERYONE!**

**HERE'S A LONG CHAPTER THAT WILL MOVE THE STORY ALONG.**

**HOPE YOU LIKE IT!! :D**

**THANKS FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS!**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 21: Please read and comment.**

**MONDAY MORNING:**

House made his way through the entrance to PPTH a little after 9 that morning, wearing his leather jacket, a white graphic t- shirt, jeans and sneakers.

Wilson was standing near the charge nurses' station, waiting for him, his hands on his hips, his head cocked to once side.

As House came closer to him, Wilson scrutinized his gait carefully, noticing that he was limping more heavily than he normally did.

"Your leg hurt?" Wilson asked knowingly, almost accusingly.

"What gave it away? The cane or the surly expression I've been carrying around for the better part of a decade?" House snarked as he walked past Wilson, not bothering to stop and chat.

Wilson promptly turned around and followed House to the elevators.

"Hurt more than usual?" Wilson pressed.

House stopped in front of the elevator, pressed the "up" button with the bottom of his cane and quickly took his Vicodin bottle out of the pocket of his leather jacket.

"Nothing that a few more of _THESE_ can't take care of," House said, shaking the bottle in front of Wilson before opening the top of the bottle and popping two pills in his mouth.

"You're feeling more pain because you feel _GUILTY_ about lying to Cuddy," Wilson stated.

House ignored Wilson's observation and tapped on the elevator button several times with the back of his hand, hoping that the action would make the doors open faster.

"And the fact that you have your next session with Cate today is making it even _WORSE_," Wilson added.

"You know that movie with Adam Sandler where he has a magical remote control?" House asked.

"… yeah, I think so…" Wilson replied, a little confused at the randomness of House's question.

"What I wouldn't give for a 'mute' button right now," House muttered.

"Just _TELL_ her," Wilson insisted. "What's the worst that can happen?"

"She can hate me for the rest of my life for confiding in some other woman instead of her and then she loses the baby because of it," House stated matter- of- factly.

"What are you doing here so early? You were still asleep when I left," Cuddy suddenly said from behind the two men, who were still facing the elevator.

Wilson and House turned around to see Cuddy walking towards them. She was wearing an ivory form fitting jacket with a matching lace camisole underneath and a lilac pencil skirt.

She was sucking on a lollipop.

"Foreman paged me," House lied quickly. "How was this morning's puke fest?"

"A little better," Cuddy replied. "I think the Red Hots and potato chips last night helped."

"Red Hots and potato chips?" Wilson said, scrunching up his face.

"They work a hell of a lot better than ginger ale," Cuddy told him.

"You got another one of those?" House asked, jutting his chin out at the large lollipop Cuddy was sucking on.

"They're Preggie Pops. You're not pregnant," she said.

"That's discrimination against non- pregnant people, and I won't stand for it," House retorted in a dramatic fashion.

Cuddy snorted. "Need you in the Clinic today."

"For patient care or a quickie?" House said hopefully.

"Patient care," she replied, wearily.

"I did a whole day in the Clinic last week," he reminded her.

"You think that ends your obligation until retirement?" she asked him.

"Or at least until someone blows the place up," he retorted, rubbing his leg absentmindedly.

Cuddy's narrowed eyes immediately focused on House's hand on his thigh.

"You ok?" she asked with concern.

"His leg hurts," Wilson answered for him.

"More than usual?" Cuddy asked.

"Yes," House and Wilson both answered.

At this, House shot Wilson a quick look of death.

"Did you take your Vicodin?" she asked him gently.

House nodded, avoiding her caring expression.

She rubbed his arm lovingly, not wanting to show him too much affection in the middle of the crowded hallway.

"Let me know if you need me," she told him before walking away from the two men.

As House and Wilson watched her walk down the hall and out of their sights, House winced as his leg seemed to throb more intensely.

At that moment, the elevator doors opened. House limped into the empty elevator while Wilson remained on the outside.

"No amount of Vicodin is going to take away your guilt," Wilson told him.

As the doors began to close, House stuck out his cane to stop them from doing so.

"Wilson," House called out, causing Wilson to turn around to face House in the elevator.

Wilson waited with an arched eyebrow.

"…I need a favor," House mumbled. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Around five minutes later, Wilson walked through the glass door of House's conference room.

Foreman, Thirteen and Kutner were sitting around the table, perusing over copies of their current patient's file.

"How's the patient?" Wilson asked.

Foreman, Thirteen and Kutner looked up from their files, surprised to see Wilson there.

"…Stable…" Foreman eventually answered.

Wilson nodded and sat down at the table with them, taking a copy of their patient's file and starting to read through it.

The team shot each other extremely confused glances.

"Where's House?" Thirteen demanded.

"…He's busy," Wilson said, not bothering to look up from the file. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So how's Cuddy feeling?" Cate asked from her position in her brown Italian leather chair, her legs crossed in front of House.

House was sitting across from her on a matching couch, feeling incredibly uncomfortable as he tapping the bottom of his cane rhythmically on the carpeted floor beneath him.

"Pregnant," he replied.

"Why didn't you tell her that you're in therapy?" Cate asked.

"Wow. You're good. You figured that out based on what she had in her cart at the supermarket? No _wonder_ why you charge three hundred a session," House said, his voice reeking with sarcasm.

"Are you going to tell her?" Cate pressed, ignoring House's remarks.

"She expects me to hide things from her. The fact that I'm formulaic is a _HUGE_ turn on."

A tiny smirk appeared on Cate's face.

"I didn't say you _had_ to tell her. I just asked her if you _did_," she answered.

House inhaled and nodded a bit, suddenly becoming fascinated with the pattern in the leather of the couch.

"So how long have you and Wilson been friends?" Cate continued.

At this, Wilson looked back at her with slight interest.

"About twenty years. Why do you want to know about Wilson?" he asked.

"Well, except for Cuddy, Wilson is the only person who seems to voluntarily spend time with you… so I figured that learning more about him will help me learn more about you," she told him.

House kept his gaze locked on Cate in an almost challenging fashion.

"He's an oncologist," he answered.

She chuckled. "Besides that."

"He's getting married," House said.

Cate nodded, waiting patiently for him to continue.

"Again," he added in disdain.

"How many times has he been married?" she asked.

"This one'll be the fourth ex- Mrs. Wilson. After five divorces, he gets a free set of steak knives," House quipped.

"Why are you so sure that this marriage will fail?" Cate asked.

"Because it's Wilson… and because she's become a complete psychopath over their wedding," he replied.

"Bridezilla, huh?" she laughed.

"In HD," he said.

"Did you have a hand in his other divorces?" she asked.

House had to admit to himself that he liked how she cut through the bullshit and got straight to the point.

"… Not all of them," he answered calmly.

"How did you know that I had something to do with Wilson's break ups?" he asked her.

"Like I said, except for Cuddy, he seems to be the only one who voluntarily spends time with you," she said, the tiny smile reappearing.

It was House's turn to smirk a bit.

"Have you always been this negative about the women that Wilson's been with?" she asked.

At this question, an image of Amber suddenly appeared in House's mind.

As if watching a movie reel in his head, House saw himself showing up at the Fusion restaurant where Wilson and Amber had a lunch date.

"No," he answered quietly.

Cate waited again in silence for House to elaborate on his answer.

"...He was dating another woman before this one. Another doctor," House said.

"And what happened with that?" she asked.

He glanced at Cate for a moment before looking back at the couch cushion next to him.

The image of himself going to Wilson's and Amber's apartment after ditching Chase at the bowling alley to work out their 'custody agreement' appeared in his mind.

"…Didn't work out," he said, refusing to elaborate on his answer.

"Did you have a hand in that too?" she pressed.

An eerie chill went through his body as his mind suddenly produced the image he never wanted to remember for as long as he lived.  

He was back on the bus, tying Amber's scarf around her leg as a tourniquet to stop the bleeding.

'**_I HAVE TO TIE THIS AROUND YOU_**,' he heard his own voice say in his head.

Without saying anything else, House pulled his pager out of his pocket and stared at the digital display, which said nothing.

"Whoops, gotta go," House said, pushing himself off the couch.

"Your pager didn't go off," Cate said.

"It's on vibrate," House lied, shoving it back in his pocket before she could get too curious.

As Cate watched him hurry out of her office, she knew that her question about Wilson's last relationship had unsettled him immensely.

She only hoped that she hadn't gone too far and that he'd come back. 

------------------------------------------------------------------- 

At around the same time that House was making his exit from Cate's office, Wilson was in the Clinic, perusing over the growing pile of patient files when Sophie walked in.

"Hey big bro," Sophie said with a smile.

Wilson smiled back warmly. "Hey little So," he replied, admiring how she looked in her olive green power suit and light pink camisole underneath.

"You look nice. What are you all dressed up for?" he asked.

"I'm going to ask Cuddy for a volunteer position in the Clinic," she replied.

Wilson chuckled. "Most people around here do their best to avoid this place."

Sophie smiled in return. "It was nice having you over last night. I feel like I never see you."

"I missed you, too," he replied sincerely.

For a moment, Wilson kept his gaze on his sister, thinking how lovely and sophisticated she looked, wondering to himself how she grew up so fast.

He remembered when he used to come home on breaks from med school and on vacation during his residency. As soon as he'd come through the door, she'd run right up to him so he could pick her up in his arms for a hug.

He smiled to himself, as he recalled that the first thing she'd always ask him was if he could play poker with her.

"So are you getting used to the idea of having Robbie as your brother in law instead of House?" Sophie asked, snapping him out of his trip down memory lane.

Wilson focused on her once again. "Chase has a big mouth," he said with a laugh.

"Mhm," she replied, grinning.

"So what do you think about Debbie and I joining you guys for dinner with mom and dad on Saturday night?" Wilson asked.

At this, Sophie's smile fell slightly. Her conversation with Debbie from the night before came flooding back to her.

Debbie had told Sophie in no uncertain terms that she had to change her wedding date, because she was getting married a week later.

She told Debbie that she'd talk to Chase about it.

But after thinking about it all night, she decided to take another approach.

"… Listen, do you have any time later? I need to talk to you about something," Sophie said.

"For you? Always," Wilson said with a smile.

"Thanks," she said gratefully.

Turning her attention towards Cuddy's office, she saw that Cuddy was in there signing off on some document that a nurse had just handed her.

"I'll see you later," Sophie said, touching his arm before walking away.

"Good luck," Wilson told her. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------- 

"Sophie, what I really need in the Clinic are more doctors. Not med students," Cuddy told her as she signed the last of a stack of forms before handing them back to the nurse.

"I'll do anything. I'll file, photocopy, I don't care," Sophie insisted as the nurse left the office.

"Fourth year not as busy as you thought it was going to be?" Cuddy asked with a knowing smile.

"Not exactly," Sophie admitted sheepishly.

Suddenly, Cuddy's attention turned towards Sophie's left hand. Her eyes widened as she rose from her desk and walked around it to Sophie on the other side.

She took Sophie's left hand in hers and stared at the sparkling engagement ring attached to it incredulously.

"… Is _THIS_ what I think it is?!" she finally said.

Sophie laughed out loud. "Yes it is," she replied with the same happy smile she had worn all weekend.

While Cuddy was still staring at Sophie's ring, her own smile forming on her face, House pushed open the doors to her office and headed right over to Cuddy's desk.

"Did you know that Sophie and Chase were engaged?!" she asked House.

But he didn't answer her.

Instead, he started rummaging through the lower right hand drawer in Cuddy's desk.

Cuddy immediately left Sophie and rushed over to her desk, slamming the drawer on House's hand.

"Ow! What'd you do that for?!" House demanded, pulling his hand back.

"Those are _MY_ Preggie Pops," Cuddy stated firmly.

"You've got a whole bag of 'em in there!" House whined.

"There's lollipops in the Clinic! Why can't you just steal those like you always do?" Cuddy asked him.

"Because these are bigger," House replied.

"So take two of the Clinic ones," she told him in irritation.

"Nurse Ratchet won't let me," he told her.

"You're not getting my Preggie Pops," Cuddy said, just as firmly as before.

"You can't guard your desk drawer forever," House informed her.

Sophie had been watching their exchange the entire time, pressing her lips together as hard as she could, trying to stop the laugh that was threatening to escape.

A slow, coy smile crept across Cuddy's face.

"Fine. I'll give you _ONE_," Cuddy acquiesced.

House smirked in triumph as she pulled a cherry flavored Preggie Pop lollipop out of the bag in her drawer and held it out for House to take it.

As House reached out for it, she immediately pulled it back out of his reach.

"… for _ONE HOUR_ of Clinic duty," she offered.

"I just did a _WHOLE DAY_ of Clinic duty last week!!" he loudly reminded her again.

"You have _YEARS_ of Clinic duty to work off! One day barely made a dent," she asserted.

"…And if you want this badly enough…" she said teasingly, dangling the Preggie Pop in front of him.

"I don't," he stated bluntly.

"Fine," she said, turning around to walk back to her desk.

House scowled and turned on his heel to head back towards the door to her office.

He then stopped in front of the door, exhaled and turned back around to her.

"One hour," he said, holding his hand out impatiently.

Cuddy grinned and handed him the cherry Preggy Pop, which he quickly grabbed.

"But I'm not charting anything," he added.

"You're seeing patients! You _HAVE_ to chart!" she insisted.

He then ripped off the wrapper of the lollipop and began to manipulate it in his hand, causing it to make a loud, annoying crackling sound.

"Sorry! I'm going through a tunnel! You're breaking up!" House said loudly over the sound of the crackling plastic.

Cuddy rolled her eyes in exasperation as she watched House put the lollipop in his mouth. On his way out, he glanced at Sophie's left hand, nodding his head at her for him to show it to her.

As she lifted her hand for him to see, House arched his eyebrow in surprise.

"Chase actually picked this ring out?" he asked in disbelief.

"No, I did," Sophie replied.

"I figured. The guy can't even match a tie with a shirt," he replied.

Sophie giggled as House left the two women in Cuddy's office.

Once House left, Cuddy turned back to Sophie.

"You really want to work in the Clinic?" Cuddy asked, her eyes sparkling mischievously.

"Yes," Sophie replied eagerly.

"…Then I think I have an idea that can benefit us both…" she said. 

---------------------------------------------------------------------- 

House was sucking on the Preggie Pop he had just conned out of Cuddy as he headed toward the Clinic, with a huge grin on his face.

He always loved how that push and pull aspect of their relationship. There were few people in House's life who could verbally spar with him, and Cuddy had always been one of them.

And it was still a massive turn on.

He had way too much of a good thing going with Cuddy. He wasn't going to screw it up by telling her the truth.

And after this morning's session with Cate, there was no way he was going back to see her.

As he quickly searched through the pile of charts from Clinic patients waiting to be seen, looking for one that wasn't too boring, Chase entered the Clinic, wearing a set of light yellow scrubs and a somber look on his face.

"We need to talk," Chase told House.

TBC…


	22. Chapter 22

**HI EVERYONE!!**

**THANKS FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS! :D**

**THIS MIGHT JUST BE THE CHAPTER THAT YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 22: Please read and comment.**

House was sucking on the Preggie Pop he had just conned out of Cuddy as he headed toward the Clinic, with a huge grin on his face.

He always loved how that push and pull aspect of their relationship. There were few people in House's life who could verbally spar with him, and Cuddy had always been one of them.

And it was still a massive turn on.

He had way too much of a good thing going with Cuddy.

He wasn't going to screw it up by telling her the truth.

And after this morning's session with Cate, there was no way he was going back to her.

As he quickly searched through the pile of charts from Clinic patients waiting to be seen, looking for one that wasn't too boring, Chase entered the Clinic, wearing a set of light yellow scrubs and a somber look on his face.

"We need to talk," Chase told House.

House looked up at Chase with mild amusement.

"…Ok," he said.

Chase looked around the Clinic area furtively. Seeing through the glass that Cuddy was in her office and preoccupied with Sophie at the moment, he leaned closer to House.

"Not here," Chase said quietly. "Let's go into an empty exam room."

"Either you've got a rash on your scrotum that you want me to look at or you want to tell me you've got cold feet about marrying Sophie. Not interested in either," House said, going back to looking through the Clinic patient charts.

From her position at the charge nurses's station, Brenda stifled a chuckle under her breath. Chase glanced at her quickly before darting his eyes back to House.

"You really don't want me to do this here," Chase insisted.

"Well, I'm not going into an exam room until I find a patient in this pile that won't put me in a coma," House declared.

Chase inhaled a bit and folded his arms across his chest.

If he wanted to talk to House privately, it looked like he was going to have to be as public as possible.

"Are you having an affair with Cate Milton?" Chase asked blatantly, his posture challenging.

House immediately looked up from the pile of charts and locked eyes with Brenda, who was staring at him with an extremely arched eyebrow.

Without another word, House grabbed Chase by his bicep and dragged him as fast as the two of them could limp into an empty Clinic exam room. 

------------------------------------------------------------------ 

At the same time, Sophie listened quietly as Cuddy explained her idea for a job for her in the Clinic.

"… I'm… not sure about this…" Sophie began tentatively.

"You said you'd do anything," Cuddy reminded her.

"I know, but I don't think House'll be too happy about this arrangement," Sophie said.

"He'll love it. You'll observe him and write down everything he says in the chart while he diagnoses the patients. You'll get good Clinic experience and _HE'LL_ get to do his thing _AND_ get away without charting. It's perfect," Cuddy stated confidently.

"You really think he'll want me attached to him like that?" Sophie asked, a bit unsure.

"Oh please. His team follows him around like he's a mother duck and they're his little ducklings. It's a power trip for him," Cuddy said dismissively.

Sophie laughed slightly as she imagined Chase a few years younger, waddling after House down the hallway.

But she was still apprehensive about the whole thing. She knew that House had very little patience for people who couldn't keep up with his thought process.

But she'd be crazy to turn an opportunity to work with the best diagnostician in the country.

She straightened her posture a bit and took a breath.

"Ok," she finally said.

"Great," Cuddy said with a smile. "Let's go find him and tell him." 

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

House shut the door behind him and quickly closed the distance between them in the exam room. His cerulean blue eyes were blazing.

Chase stared right back at him in defiance.

"What I'm doing with Cate is none of your damn business—" House began in a low, menacing voice.

"You _MADE_ it my business when you called me this weekend and told me to tell Cuddy that if she asks me anything that you referred a patient to her!" Chase shot right back at him, matching his low, intense tone.

For a moment, House was actually impressed at how Chase was attempting to challenge him.

But he'd never admit that.

Instead, he just cocked his head with a puzzled expression.

"And this weekend, you had no problem with that. Now suddenly you _do_," House observed calmly.

Chase raked his hands through his hair in aggravation and exhaled hard through his nose, hating how House had the uncanny ability to deflect everything off of him.

"I assume you talked to Wilson about this," House continued.

"Why would you assume that?" Chase asked coolly, trying to play House's game.

"Judging by that rock on Sophie's finger, I'm thinking that you all had dinner together like one big happy family, and I'm always the subject of fascinating dinner conversation," House said.

"Wilson thinks that whatever you're doing with Cate could possibly be a good thing for you and Cuddy and that it's a hell of a lot better than getting drunk or OD'ing on pills," Chase told him.

"And since Wilson had two affairs… you want to know if he's as morally bankrupt as I am…" House began, his mouth turning up at the corners.

"…Because if he is… then maybe your fiancée is too," House finished, waiting for Chase to react.

And he did.

Chase's eyes widened as if they were to pop out on springs, while his face became an angry shade of red as the rage rose inside him.

"Sophie has _NOTHING_ to do with this!!" Chase exclaimed.

Knowing he had taken the focus off himself for the moment, and secretly taking pleasure in riling Chase up in the process, House continued.

"She plays poker for money… she uses her sex appeal to manipulate male opponents…" House trailed off.

"Maybe you think that you were too hasty in your proposal," House said.

Chase could feel his ankle starting to throb as his anger grew exponentially. He knew what House was trying to do, but he still didn't like what he had said.

Especially since what he said about Sophie's game play tactics was true.

Chase hardened his jaw. "I'm not gonna listen to this," he muttered, turning around to leave the room.

House said nothing as he watched him limp away, waiting for the second that Chase's fingers would make contact with the door handle.

"Yes," House stated as soon as Chase gripped the handle to open the door.

Chase immediately stopped and turned around.

"… Yes??" Chase repeated, dumbfounded.

"Cate Milton and Greg House are having hot, passionate, kinky, organic, free range sex all up in this hospital. Did you and Cameron ever do it in the morgue? The acoustics are a- _MA_- zing," House said as he crossed the room once more to Chase.

For a moment, Chase just stood there, staring at House incredulously.

Then he laughed in disgust.

"You're obviously lying," Chase stated.

"Am I?" House asked enigmatically.

Growing a bit weary of how House was toying with him, Chase knew that if he was ever going to get a kernel of truth out of House that he'd have to switch gears.

"I'm not judging you… Chase began gently.

"Of _COURSE_ you're judging me! If you weren't, you wouldn't have dragged me in here!" House exclaimed.

"You… dragged _ME_ in here," Chase reminded him.

House rolled his eyes impatiently. "Don't you understand that it doesn't matter how I answer?!"

Chase raised his eyebrows a bit, waiting for House to explain himself.

"I just said I _AM_ having an affair, and you didn't believe me. If I had told you that I _WASN'T_ having an affair you wouldn't have believed that either!" House yelled, hating that he had to connect the dots for Chase.

"… I would have believed you," Chase said.

"No. You would've _WANTED_ to believe me. That's not the same thing," House clarified.

"Is it such a bad thing that I want to believe that you'd never do something like this to Cuddy?" Chase demanded.

"It's a bad thing for you to have this much faith in me," House told him.

"Why?"

House lowered his head ever so slightly.

"Because you'll constantly be disappointed," he mumbled.

Chase took a deep breath and let it out, still having no idea if House was having an affair or not.

"Fine. Don't tell me," Chase said in defeat.

He headed towards the door again, this time opening it ever so slightly before House spoke up.

"She's my therapist," House said in a gruff voice.

The door still open a crack, Chase turned around again with an amused smirk.

"Is that what they're calling it now?" Chase said with a curt laugh.

"I've had two sessions with her," House continued, looking down at the floor with the same gruff, almost embarrassed tone.

Chase shook his head in confusion, realizing that House was actually telling him the truth.

"Why would you keep that a secret from Cuddy?" he asked.

House looked up from the floor, meeting Chase's eyes once again.

"How do you think Sophie would feel if you told her that you found it easier to talk to Cameron about certain things than her?" House asked.

Chase shrugged a little. "Maybe… she'll think it's a good thing," he offered weakly.

"Yeah, I'm _SURE_ she'll think that," House said sarcastically.

"So you're just gonna keep seeing Cate secretly and hope Cuddy never finds out?" Chase demanded.

"Too late," a soft, familiar alto voice said from the doorway.

House and Chase both spun their heads around towards the door.

Completely absorbed in their own conversation, they hadn't even noticed that the door had opened all the way and that Cuddy and Sophie were standing there.

Upon seeing Cuddy, Chase felt his stomach leap up to his throat.

Sophie's eyes immediately darted away from House and Chase, feeling completely embarrassed for Cuddy.

But Cuddy kept her gaze on House, who was staring back at her, completely motionless.

Her face was serene, devoid of any emotion.

She slowly walked into the exam room, stopping about a foot away from House.

"Sophie is going to assist you in the Clinic. She's going to chart for you while you see patients," Cuddy said a little too calmly, forcefully pushing down the emotions churning inside her.

But despite her best effort, House could see was that her soft blue- grey eyes were full of hurt.

So he nodded in agreement, looking away in humiliation.

And with that, Cuddy turned on her heel and left the room, leaving the door open behind her.

Chase watched Cuddy leave the room at first, then darted his eyes back and forth from House to Sophie, having no idea what he should do.

"Go back to the NICU," House ordered Chase, his voice even more gruff than before.

"I'll see you later," he said to Sophie, barely above a whisper.

Sophie nodded, which Chase didn't see because he had turned around and left the room as quickly as he possibly could.

Now, standing in the exam room alone with House, Sophie could feel her heart thump anxiously in her chest, wondering if she should just leave as well.

House glanced up at her, sensing her nervousness.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Go find me a patient," House told her.

Sophie nodded swiftly and left the room to head over to the charge nurses' station.

As she quickly began sorting through the pile of charts, she looked up in the direction of Cuddy's office.

Through the glass, she could see Cuddy sitting at her desk, going over a spreadsheet as if nothing had happened.

She couldn't see the tears welling up in Cuddy's eyes as she tried to bury herself in her work.

TBC…


	23. Chapter 23

**HI EVERYONE!**

**SORRY FOR THE DELAY. BUT HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**THANKS FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS!**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 23: Please read and comment.**

After a few short moments, Sophie came back into the Clinic exam room with three patient charts for House to consider. House was sitting on a nearby metal stool, leaning his chin heavily on his cane, which was propped up between his legs. He was focused on the floor beneath him.

Sophie drew in a tiny breath and decided that the best thing to do at the moment would be to pretend that the scene between House and Cuddy had not just happened.

"Thirty five year old male with fever, chills, body aches—" Sophie began to read off of the first folder.

"Viral infection," House interrupted gruffly without looking up. "Next."

She paused for a moment and nodded dutifully before going on to the next folder.

"Five year old female with a stuffy nose and a cough," she read off the next chart.

"Viral _infection_," he repeated, in a bit more irritated tone. "_NEXT_."

"Twenty year old male with a headache," Sophie read off the third folder.

House rolled his eyes in exasperation. "Twenty year old male with a headache means that either he's hung over or he's lying and really thinks he has an STD. _NEXT_," he stated impatiently.

"Ok… I'll get more charts," she offered.

As she turned around and headed back towards the charge nurse's station, House watched her intently from his position on the stool in the exam room.

She diligently searched through the files for a few minutes until she pulled out one from the middle of the pile, fairly confident that the symptoms written on the post- it not attached to it were vague enough to get House interested.

She turned around once more, finding herself now face to face with House. She jumped a little in surprise, not expecting him to be right next to her. His eyes were penetrating hers.

"You're _PATHETIC_," House stated bluntly.

"Is this what you really want to do? Be my lapdog like your fiancé used to be?" he demanded of her.

"I have free time and I want to learn," she replied.

"To do what? Take my abuse? At least Chase got _PAID_ to do that. You're doing it for free," House said.

She turned down her lower lip a bit and shrugged.

"Maybe I like pain, too," she said coyly, refusing to be daunted by House's ire.

From her position at the charge nurse's station, Brenda giggled.

But House wasn't laughing.

"You're trying to be the perfect woman for Chase," he said.

"You screwed up last week when you brought him to the poker game at Danny the Intern's place, so you figured if you whisked him away to a tropical paradise, that it'd make everything all better," House explained.

"And now that he proposed to you, you have to continue to be the good little girl and keep up your overachieving student persona," he continued, waiting for her reaction.

Sophie drew in a breath and exhaled, her chest rising as she did so.

She kept her eyes on House and her expression completely stoic at his observation, trying to appear as if the comment merely annoyed her, instead of letting him know that he had hit close to home.

"And either you're genuinely interested in my supposed "ulterior motive" for being here…" she replied, making quotation marks in the air with her fingers.

"Or you're just trying to distract yourself from the guilt for what you did to Cuddy by inventing a new puzzle for yourself," she finished.

"If Chase had kept his damn mouth shut—" House began.

"This is _NOT_ Chase's fault!" Sophie interrupted furiously.

House actually pulled back a bit, genuinely surprised at her outburst. Her eyes were flashing with anger.

"It's _YOURS_," she stated menacingly.

Brenda, who had been listening to their entire exchange, snapped her head back to House, eagerly waiting for his response.

"How much did she hear?" he asked Sophie in a low voice.

"She heard you tell Robbie that Cate is your therapist and everything else after that," Sophie replied, regaining her composure.

At that, House tilted his head slightly at the chart in Sophie's hand and promptly took it from her, squinting his eyes a bit at the name on it.

"…'_Carole'_…" he read off the chart. "…Is in exam room 3. Take her history and tell her I'll be there in ten minutes," he ordered Sophie as he thrust the file back at her.

She took the file from him and looked down at herself as House began to head towards Cuddy's office.

Sophie's hospital ID badge was clipped to the breast pocket of her suit, but she wasn't wearing her student lab coat.

"I need to go to my locker first," Sophie called after him as he got closer to Cuddy's office.

"Didn't realize we were in high school. Did you forget your textbook or did you just want another glimpse of your _"I Heart Jesse Spencer"_ poster before class started?" he called out back to her.

Still carrying the file, she quickly strode up to him. By now, his hand was resting on the door handle of Cuddy's office.

"I mean… I don't have my lab coat on," she explained with slight embarrassment.

House glanced down at himself and then back up at her.

"Neither do I," he said plainly.

He then pushed his way into Cuddy's office without another word.

Even though Sophie wanted to hear what Cuddy and House were about to say to each other, she knew that if she stayed there, House would see that she wasn't following his orders.

So she turned on her heel and headed back over to the Clinic area. When she arrived at the door to exam room 3, she smoothed out her suit and wore a confident expression as she entered the room with her patient's file.

And as she did, Danny kept his gaze on her from his position at the other end of the Clinic. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Through the glass doors, Cuddy saw House talking to Sophie right outside her office with his hand on the door handle.

She immediately wiped her eyes, sniffed and straightened her posture in her chair while attempting to focus on the spreadsheet in front of her.

She felt her entire body tense up when House limped into her office. She could feel his gaze on her, but refused to look up from her spreadsheet and meet his eyes.

"Why aren't you in the Clinic?" Cuddy said, attempting to hide the raspy tone in her voice as she kept her eyes on her work.

"Sophie's taking a history of the patient," House replied softly, almost contritely.

"Then go _BACK_ to the Clinic and make sure she does it right," Cuddy said curtly.

"She's a fourth year med student. She knows how to take a history," House pointed out.

At that, Cuddy looked up at him, her eyes shooting daggers.

"And then _AFTER_ that, the patient is going to expect a _DOCTOR_ to give a diagnosis and treatment. Not a med student without a lab coat on!" she snapped.

"Making Sophie part of my entourage was _YOUR_ idea. Not mine," House reminded her.

Cuddy shook her head, her mouth contorting in anger.

She couldn't believe that he actually had the nerve to turn this around on her after what he had done.

She got up from her desk and walked around to the front of it so she was face to face with him.

"That's right. It was _MY_ idea. And I'm your boss, so go do your job and get out of here!!" she yelled, pointing to her office door.

House kept his face calm.

"You heard me say that Cate's my therapist," House said.

"And you also heard me say that I found it easier to talk to her about certain things than you," he added.

"And that's why you're angry at me—" he continued.

"You think I care if you decide to see a therapist?! You've been basically using Wilson as a therapist for _YEARS_!" Cuddy exclaimed.

"Last time I checked, Wilson isn't a woman," House replied.

Cuddy laughed in complete disgust, her face flushing from a combination of her pregnancy hormones and her fury.

"You don't know _ANYTHING_," she seethed.

"What I'm angry about is that you felt the need to _KEEP_ this from me. That you made up a _LIE_ because you automatically assumed that I wouldn't understand," she explained to him.

"Do you?" he asked, his voice still incredibly calm.

She felt her lower lip quiver just a bit. She pressed her lips together to maintain her composure, refusing to let House see any weakness in her.

"I never expected you to tell me every little feeling you have, Greg," she began as calmly as she could.

"But I do expect you to tell me the truth," she finished, her voice breaking a bit.

She waited for House to show her some sign of remorse, some sign that he felt bad about lying to her.

But if he did feel badly, he didn't show it.

"So… now that you know the truth… we're ok, right?" he only asked.

She let out another little laugh.

But this time, it was one of defeat.

"I don't know," she admitted wearily.

House reached out to her in an attempt to pull her into an embrace. But she backed up away from him. The usual sparkle in her blue- grey eyes was completely gone.

"Go back to the Clinic," she told him. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------- 

A few minutes later, House was in exam room 3, scrutinizing a localized angry, red patch of blisters on the back of Carole, their fifty- five year old female patient.

Sophie was sitting in a nearby chair, her pen poised in the air, waiting for House to say something to Carole.

She was extremely curious to know what had transpired between him and Cuddy in her office a few moments ago, but she knew that now was not the time to ask him.

"Cool," House said, running his latex covered hand over the rash on Carole's back as he stared at it.

"It's not cool. It hurts. A _LOT_," Carole complained.

"How long has she had the rash?" House asked Sophie, turning away from the patient.

"Two days," Sophie replied, reading the notes she had taken of Carole's history.

"Did she say that she had pain or a burning sensation in the area a few days ago?" House asked her.

"Yes. Five days ago," Sophie said.

"And did she have flu- like symptoms about three days ago?"

"Chills, a headache and diarrhea."

"But no fever," House clarified to Sophie.

"No," Sophie stated.

As Sophie and House continued to discuss her symptoms, Carole looked back and forth at them, as if she was watching a tennis match.

"Don't you want to ask me anything?" Carole demanded of House in obvious irritation.

"Nope," House replied.

Carole's eyes widened a bit, not expecting such a blunt response.

"So what does she have, Wilson?" House asked Sophie.

"Shingles," Sophie replied confidently, trying not to show how proud she was inside at knowing the diagnosis.

"_SHINGLES_?!" Carole exclaimed in horror.

"Shingles," House repeated.

He then turned back to Sophie. "It's your turn, right?" he asked, gesturing to her.

"But… I wasn't around anyone who had this!" Carole declared nervously.

"Yes you were. Yourself," House told her.

"I- I don't understand," Carole stammered.

"When did she have chickenpox?" House asked Sophie with impatience.

Sophie quickly flipped through the chart and found the patient checklist page of the hospital's forms that all patients were required to fill out before seeing a doctor at the Clinic.

"When she was four," Sophie reported as she read it off the chart.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Carole demanded.

"Explain it to her so I don't have to waste my breath," House told Sophie.

Carole made a sound of indignation as Sophie got up from her seat, giving their patient an apologetic look for House's behavior before explaining the diagnosis.

"After you get better from chickenpox, the Varicella virus stays dormant in your nerve roots. In some people, it stays that way forever. In others, it wakes up if something that weakens the immune systems triggers it. Usually disease, stress or aging. When the virus becomes active again, it causes shingles," Sophie explained.

House nodded ever so slightly in agreement. He then pulled his prescription pad out of his pocket.

"I'm writing you a prescription for oral acyclovir and a topical antibiotic to prevent infection of the blisters. You can take Tylenol or Motrin for the pain," he told Carole as he scribbled two scripts and handed them to her.

Sophie quickly wrote down the treatment and medicines that House had prescribed to the patient, peeking over at the scripts to see the dosages and durations.

"You should also stay away from infants or anyone you know that has never had chickenpox. You can transmit chickenpox to others who've never had it," Sophie added as she wrote in the chart.

Carole looked at House for confirmation of Sophie's statement.

"What she said," House stated, jutting his chin at Sophie.

Without another word, House then left the room and the patient. After Sophie finished writing in the chart, she left the room as well with the chart in her hand.

House snapped his fingers at Sophie.

"Gimme," House said, holding out his hand impatiently for the chart.

Sophie gave him the chart. He then flipped through it to the end of her notes, scrawled his name on the bottom of the page and tossed it on the pile.

"Don't you want to read what I wrote?" she asked him.

"No," he replied.

"But… what if I missed something?" she asked a bit nervously.

"Did you?" he asked her, staring into her deep brown eyes.

Sophie thought for a moment.

"No," she said confidently.

"Then find me another patient," he ordered her.

As Sophie began to sort through the pile on Brenda's desk once more, House glanced up through the glass partition in front of Cuddy's office.

Cuddy wasn't there.

But Danny was.

And he was still watching Sophie.

------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Chase was in the NICU examining a newborn baby girl in a bassinette when Cuddy walked in, her heels clicking against the linoleum floor beneath her feet. Chase looked up from the newborn at the sound.

He smiled softly upon seeing her, trying not to look too sympathetic.

"She's big for a pre- term," Cuddy commented upon gazing at the newborn, who was swaddled in a pink and white striped blanket and sleeping peacefully in the bassinette.

"She's full- term. Mum had a fever during delivery," Chase explained.

She returned his smile, enjoying the warmth and tenderness that always came through in his voice when he was with the babies, letting it envelop her.

Chase could see that her smile didn't reach her eyes. But he said nothing.

As Chase went to examine another newborn in an adjacent bassinette, Cuddy's smile faded.

"You knew, didn't you?" Cuddy asked him, her voice barely above a whisper, keeping her eyes on the infant in front of her.

Chase looked up from the newborn and up at her, feeling his heart thump with anxiety in his chest.  "…I didn't know that House was seeing a therapist," he began.

"But you knew that he was hiding something from me," she clarified, her voice still small.

Chase paused once more. "…He said he's not going back to her," he told Cuddy, hoping that would soften the blow.

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" she asked sadly.

Not knowing what else to do, Chase crossed back to her and placed his hand on her shoulder. She gazed up at his gentle expression and felt herself fall into his arms.

He held her close to him, resting his chin on her shoulder as she sniffed into his scrubs top.

"Do you know what he told me?" she said in a muffled voice against his chest.

"He told me that Stacy once told him that when they were together that there was no room for her in his life, which is probably why they never got married or had kids," Cuddy revealed to him.

"…And that he didn't want to make the same mistake with me," she added.

"And you don't think that's true?" Chase asked her still holding her close to him.

"I don't know what to think anymore," Cuddy said with a tired shrug.

"What did you say to him when he told you that?" Chase pressed.

Cuddy exhaled deeply. "That I didn't get together with him in the hopes that I'd be able to change him one day and that I love him exactly for who he is," she replied.

Chase then loosened his embrace a bit, causing her to look up at him.

"Then House is the luckiest ba$tard I know," Chase said, smiling at her once more.

This time, Cuddy smiled back at him in earnest. He pulled her in for another hug, which she welcomed once again.

"When I told him that, he said I was insane," Cuddy said.

"He's probably right," Chase joked.

Cuddy laughed out loud at that, slumping her shoulders a bit in his arms.

"So you're not angry that he feels comfortable talking to another woman instead of you about certain things?" Chase asked her.

"I learned a long time ago that it takes a village to raise House," she said, trying to regain some strength in her voice as she spoke.

"…But it still hurts," Chase said, knowing full well that she was putting up a front.

She nodded in response against his scrubs top.

"What are you gonna do?" he asked.

"…I don't know yet," she admitted.

Just then, Chase's cell phone rang in the back pocket of his scrubs pants. Reluctantly, he released Cuddy from his arms and grabbed his phone to read the display.

"I should take this," Chase murmured as he saw the number on his phone.

Cuddy smiled and nodded. "I'll see you later," she said.

Chase smiled back at her as he answered the call while Cuddy exited the NICU.

"Hey," Chase said happily into his phone.

"It's Tuesday," Cameron said on the other end.

Chase scrunched up his face a bit in confusion.

"No… it's Monday," he corrected her.

"I know…" Cameron said, taking a well- timed pause as she did two years ago when she said the same words to him.

"…But I didn't feel like waiting," she said, smiling on the other end of the phone.

TBC…


	24. Chapter 24

**HI EVERYONE!!**

**SORRY I DIDN'T POST LAST NIGHT. I REDID THIS CHAPTER TWICE UNTIL I WAS HAPPY WITH IT.**

**BUT HERE IT IS.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 24: Please read and comment.**

"Hey," Chase said happily into his phone.

"It's Tuesday," Cameron said on the other end.

Chase scrunched up his face a bit in confusion.

"No… it's Monday," he corrected her.

"I know…" Cameron said, taking a well- timed pause.

"…But I didn't feel like waiting," she said, smiling on the other end of the phone.

Chase grinned, remembering fondly when she had told him that on his doorstep two years ago.

"Am I that irresistible?" he teased.

"Totally," she teased back. "You busy?"

"I've got a few minutes," he told her. He then nodded to the nurse on duty that he'd be stepping out for a bit, who nodded in return.

He then limped out into the hallway so he could continue his conversation with Cameron in a more private setting.

"So how does dinner this weekend sound?" Cameron asked him in a friendly manner.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I can't this weekend. Sophie's parents are coming to see the house," Chase told her regrettably.

"Well, I can't next weekend… 'cause I'll be on a plane," she replied, just as disappointed as he was.

"I thought you weren't leaving for a few months yet because you had to get all your immunizations," he added, remembering that she had told him that at their painting party.

"We're going to Europe first for a few months," she explained. "I'll just get the required vaccinations there."

"Europe, huh? Business or pleasure?" he asked.

"Business. Sebastian's making a few pitches to some pharmaceutical companies in Germany, then a lecture circuit in Switzerland, France and Spain," she told him.

"No time for play?" Chase inquired coyly.

Cameron laughed. "Maybe I can tear him away from his work long enough to see the sights and go to the beach."

"And then off to Africa," Chase said.

Cameron exhaled a bit.

"...Yep," she said in a resigned manner.

Chase furrowed his brow at her tone.

"You don't seem excited," he commented.

"No, I'm excited," she said quickly. "It's just…" she trailed off.

Chase waited for her to finish her sentence, but when she didn't, he knew that something was wrong.

"… You sure you can't make it this weekend?" she asked him, almost pleadingly.

Chase scratched the back of his neck in hesitation. He could tell that whatever she wanted to tell him wasn't something she wanted to discuss over the phone.

And he really did want to see her before she left.

"How about Thursday? My shift's over at five- thirty. I could be in Manhattan by seven," he offered.

"Thursday's perfect. How does sushi at Nobu sound?" her voice brightening considerably at Chase's suggestion.

"That sounds great," he said.

"Ok, I'll see you then," Cameron said happily.

It was only after Chase hung up that he realized that Cameron hadn't asked if Sophie would be joining them for dinner. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------ 

"I've gotta take a leak," House announced to Sophie after signing off on their tenth patient. "Find another patient."

Sophie nodded as House limped off to the bathroom, leaving her at the charge nurse's desk to wade through the somehow ever growing pile of charts to find them another case.

As she searched for yet another patient that House would actually agree to see without the risk of dying of boredom, nurse Brenda watched her with an amused smirk on her face.

"I gotta hand it to you. You deal with him a lot better than I do," Brenda remarked.

Sophie smiled a bit. "I'm just doing what he's telling me to do," she replied with a shrug.

"Which is why you're dealing with him a lot better than I do," Brenda repeated in a deadpanned voice.

Sophie laughed in response. "He's not so bad," she said.

"Trust me. He's worse," Brenda quipped.

Sophie shook her head, keeping the smile on her face, refusing to join her in a bashing session about her new boss.

Despite how rude House was to the patients, she was thoroughly enjoying her experience assisting him and she knew how special it was to get the opportunity to work with him this closely.

While Sophie raised her eyebrow at a chart in the pile that House might find fairly interesting, Brenda leaned over the desk towards her.

"So is House really having an affair?" Brenda asked in a conspiratorial tone.

Sophie looked up from the charts to see Brenda staring at her eagerly.

"No. It was just a misunderstanding, that's all," Sophie said firmly, remembering that Wilson told her that the nurses loved to gossip about this kind of thing.

And she wasn't about to add grist to the rumor mill that was PPTH.

Brenda seemed obviously disappointed by this. When she saw that Sophie wasn't going to tell her anything else, she slunk back into her chair and continued to go through her own paperwork with a scowl on her face.

"Congratulations," a male voice suddenly said next to Sophie.

Sophie turned in the direction of the voice and saw Danny leaning against the charge nurse's desk about a foot away from her.

A lock of his sandy brown hair was falling over his eyes. He was wearing his lab coat over his slacks, button down shirt and tie. As usual, he had a disarming smile on his face showing his dimple on his left cheek.

If he hadn't acted like a complete asshole the other night, Sophie might have thought he looked handsome.

"Excuse me?" she said lightly, not understanding what he meant.

"That is an engagement ring, I assume," he said, jutting his chin at her left hand, which was resting on the charge nurse's desk.

Sophie looked down at her bezel set engagement ring, which was sparkling at her.

"Yes, it is," she replied.

"So I was right about the congratulations," he commented.

Having nothing else to say to him, Sophie turned back to the charts while Danny kept his eye on her.

"I see you're working for House. How'd you swing that?" he asked in a friendly manner.

"…How'd you know I was working for House?" she asked guardedly, not turning away from the charts.

"Oh, I saw him tell you to go into one of the exam rooms. I assumed he wasn't giving you a physical," Danny replied, laughing at his own joke.

But Sophie didn't laugh along with him.

"I asked Cuddy if I could volunteer in the Clinic, and she assigned me to assist Dr. House," Sophie replied simply.

"That's great. Working with House must be some experience," he commented.

"I'm learning a lot," she said curtly, refusing to elaborate.

Danny saw that she wasn't going to give him an inch. He exhaled through his nose with a contrite, sheepish look and lowered his head a bit.

"Listen, I just wanted to apologize for the other night. I was way out of line," he said to her, placing his hand on his chest as he spoke.

Sophie just stood there, nodding slowly. She didn't say anything.

"Too many beers plus trying to show off for my buddies. You understand, right?" he asked, chuckling a bit to show her his embarrassment.

"Should I?" Sophie asked, refusing to soften.

He gave her a lopsided adorable grin. "Please?" he asked.

"If you're trying to get a chance to win your money back, I'm not biting," she told him flatly.

"No, you won that money. It's yours. That's not what this is about," he said quickly.

He then stepped a bit closer to her.

"I just think we got off on the wrong foot… and I'd like a chance to make it right," he told her gently.

Sophie searched his face for any sign that he was lying or had some hidden, ulterior motive for wanting to patch things up with her.

But she saw nothing.

_"HE'S A LOUSY POKER PLAYER. HE CAN'T BE THAT GOOD OF AN ACTOR," _she decided to herself.

Danny shrugged. "And you never know. We might have to work together to save a life one day," he added in a charming voice.

As a reflex, Sophie glanced down at his hospital ID badge and then back up at his face. He was right that one day they might have to work together.

And she had no desire to have any enemies among her future colleagues.

As he held his hand out for her to shake it, her face softened. She then reluctantly shook his hand and smiled a bit.

"_ROBBIE'S GONNA KILL ME_," she thought to herself as she shook his hand. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------ 

Later that day, Wilson and Chase were sitting together at a booth in the cafeteria having a late lunch.

"This is a nice change," Wilson remarked, taking a bite of his turkey club sandwich.

"You mean instead of having lunch with House?" Chase asked, stabbing at a piece of cantaloupe in the plastic container in front of him.

"I mean instead of having to pay for _House's_ lunch only to have him steal _MY_ lunch off my plate," Wilson explained.

Chase smirked. "I remember when you made him macadamia nut pancakes a few years ago. I tried to take one and he slapped my hand away," as he chewed on the cantaloupe.

"Well, now that you're gonna be family, I guess I can reveal the secret of my macadamia nut pancakes," Wilson joked.

Chase smiled and decided to eat a chunk of honeydew next.

"So what did House do now?" Wilson suddenly asked him.

Chase looked up at Wilson, the piece of honeydew making a protrusion from the inside of his cheek.

"How'd you know I wanted to talk to you about House?" Chase asked.

"Even though I'd like to think that you're trying to bond with your future brother- in- law, I have a feeling that's not the case," Wilson said.

Chase chewed the remainder of the melon in his mouth and washed it down with a swig of water.

"… Did you know that House was seeing a therapist?" Chase asked tentatively.

"Yes," Wilson admitted.

"So… the other night… when you said that it was better than OD'ing on pills or drowning himself in Bourbon…" Chase continued.

"Yes, that's what I meant," Wilson replied with an amused grin.

Chase exhaled a breath he didn't even know he was holding and relaxed back into his chair.

"You thought House was having an affair," Wilson said knowingly.

"And you didn't? The way he was being so secretive about everything?" Chase demanded.

"House has too much of a good thing going with Cuddy to screw it up by cheating on her," Wilson said.

"And when House finds something that works for him, he clings to it, like a toddler does to a blanket. Desperately sometimes," Wilson added.

"Like you," Chase commented.

Wilson chuckled. "Yep."

"Well he might not have had an affair, but he definitely screwed up," Chase commented.

"…Cuddy knows about Cate?" Wilson asked, his smile fading as his expression became more grave.

Chase nodded. "She walked in on House and I talking in the Clinic about it."

Wilson's expression remained thoughtful for a moment, hoping that Cuddy wasn't somewhere crying her eyes out.

"She took it well," Chase said, reading the meaning behind the concern on Wilson's features.  "I don't think she cared so much about him being in therapy as much as that he kept it from her."

"Just like I told him she would," Wilson sighed.

The two men shared a silence at the table, mulling over the situation in their minds.

"You know, you and I never have to have kids with our future spouses. We could just get joint custody of House," Wilson said in a deadpanned voice.

"You wanna take weekends?" Chase asked dryly without missing a beat.

As they shared a laugh over that, Sophie entered the cafeteria.

Chase spotted her immediately and waved her over to their table, his face brightening upon seeing her. She smiled back and crossed the room to where the two men were sitting. She slid into the booth next to Chase and gave him a soft kiss.

"Hi baby," Chase said, returning her kiss.

Sophie smiled as he kissed her lightly, tasting the sweetness of the cantaloupe he had just eaten on his lips.

"So how was your first day in the Clinic?" Wilson asked her as he chewed on a bite of his sandwich.

"…Interesting," Sophie replied vaguely, as she replayed the day's events in her mind.

Wilson raised his eyebrows. "Define 'interesting,'" he said, intrigued.

"She worked with House," Chase explained, as he popped a piece of cantaloupe in his mouth with his fork.

"And you actually lived to tell the tale?" Wilson asked in an overly dramatic fashion.

Sophie kicked him lightly under the table. "Cuddy assigned me to assist him. I'm doing all his charting," she explained.

"Good luck with that," Wilson snorted.

"He's actually a very good teacher. He let me guess all of the diagnoses. And I was right most of the time," Sophie said.

"He's not a good teacher. He just found another way to avoid doing his job and Cuddy found another way to make him complete his Clinic hours," Wilson muttered, focusing back on his lunch once more.

"Well, then it's win- win all around, because I'm learning a lot," Sophie stated with a smile, refusing to let her brother's view on House dampen her spirits.

Chase beamed. "That's great," he said, caressing her bare knee under the table out of Wilson's view.

She turned towards Chase, returning his sweet smile.

But as she gazed at his adorable face, she felt anxiety start to stir in her belly as she prepared herself to tell him about running into Danny at the Clinic.

"You said you wanted to talk to me about something. What was it?" Wilson suddenly asked her, throwing her off track.

As she turned her attention back to Wilson, it took a moment for Sophie to realize what he was talking about. She had been so preoccupied by the morning's events in the Clinic that she had forgotten that she wanted to talk to him about what Debbie had said to her last night.

"Oh… it's not important," she replied with a dismissive wave of her hand.

Wilson raised his eyebrows, knowing his sister was holding back. Sophie slumped her shoulders a bit, knowing that she had no choice but to tell him.

"… Debbie… told me that we had to change our wedding date," Sophie said under her breath.

Chase arched his brow at her in surprise. She gave him an apologetic look before turning back to Wilson.

At first, Wilson's assumed that Sophie was playing up their little scheme to rig House and Chase's betting pool against their marriage for Chase's benefit.

But the almost imperceptible shake of her head and the somber look on her face told him that she wasn't.

"When was this?" Wilson asked.

"Saturday night, when you guys were over," Sophie replied.

"…Did she say _why_?" Wilson asked, stymied.

Sophie knew that what she was about to say to Wilson would hurt him. He loved Debbie very much.

But at this point, she saw no reason to keep the entire truth from him.

"…She said that you guys were getting married a week later… and that nobody in our family would come to your fourth wedding if they had to travel twice for two weekends in a row," Sophie told him.

Wilson was visibly shocked.

"She actually SAID that?" he asked incredulously.

Sophie nodded reluctantly in response.

Chase, who had said nothing during their entire exchange, popped his eyebrows and took another sip of his water.

If it was one thing he had learned over the years, it was when to stay quiet.

Wilson then promptly slid out of the booth with an irate expression on his face.

"Where are you going?" Sophie asked, watching him.

"To talk to my fiancée," Wilson replied flatly.

Sophie blew a slow puff of air out of her cheeks with a heavy heart as she watched her brother exit the cafeteria in a huff.

"Great," Sophie muttered sarcastically, still watching the exit to the café, thinking about the damage she had just caused.

"Something you forget to tell me?" Chase asked her.

Sophie turned and saw Chase's slightly amused expression.

She tsked. "I'm sorry. I should've told you first," she apologized.

Chase smiled a bit. "So you _don't_ want to change our wedding date," he clarified.

"Are you kidding me? I want to marry you as soon as possible," she stated.

Chase's smile broadened at that.

"Good," he said, pulling her closer to him in the booth.

As he kissed her tenderly, Sophie thought that telling Chase about her encounter with Danny could wait a while.

And at the same time, Chase figured that telling Sophie about his dinner plans with Cameron on Thursday night could wait, too.

TBC…


	25. Chapter 25

**HI EVERYONE!**

**OK, THIS IS A RATHER LONG CHAPTER... BUT IT WILL MOVE THINGS ALONG.**

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**CHAPTER 25: Please read and comment.**

A few minutes after Wilson had left the cafeteria, he opened the door to Debbie's office in the accounting department. He found her at her desk, on the phone. She smiled upon seeing him, raised her finger, indicating that she'd only be a moment longer, and waved him over to sit down on the plush couch against the wall.

But instead, he took an empty seat that was across from her desk.

"… Can I get back to you?" Debbie said to whoever she was talking to on the phone, a little surprised to see where Wilson had sat down.

Wilson waited patiently for her to end her phone call.

"Great. I'll call you back," Debbie said, and hung up the phone.

"Hi," she said, the same smile on her face. "This is a nice surprise."

Wilson just stared at her.

"This is a joke, right?" he finally asked.

Debbie furrowed her brow. "…I'm… not sure what you mean," she said haltingly.

"You actually told my sister that she had to change her wedding date?" Wilson demanded incredulously.

Debbie felt her stomach tighten. "James, please… let me explain—"

"Did you think that she wasn't going to tell me what you said? That she wouldn't be upset by it?" Wilson continued, angrily. "How could you _DO_ something like that?"

"James, their wedding is a week before ours. I just figured that your parents wouldn't want to travel two weekends in a row—" Debbie explained calmly, trying to quell his anger.

"You've never even _MET_ my parents! How could you assume that they wouldn't want to travel?!" Wilson exclaimed.

For some reason, Wilson's question made something snap inside her.

"You know what? You're _right_. I _haven't_ met your parents. Why is that?!" she asked him sharply.

Wilson backed his body up a bit in the chair, the question catching him off guard.

"I've never met them, I've never even _spoken_ to them on the phone. Did you even tell them that you're engaged?" she continued in the same interrogational tone.

"…I… was… planning on telling them this weekend," Wilson stammered.

"Would you have told them if they weren't already coming to see Chase and Sophie's new house?" she demanded.

"Uh…" was all he could say in response.

"…Do they even know who I am?" she asked in a softer tone.

Wilson pursed his lips together, avoiding her gaze. She took his silence to mean that he hadn't even told his parents that he was dating her.  

"Either you're completely ashamed of me… or you don't want to see the weary, disdainful looks on your parents' faces when you tell them that you're walking down the aisle for the fourth time," she said, her voice full of hurt.

"I'm not ashamed of you," Wilson said quickly and sincerely.

Debbie's mouth turned down.

"But you know how they're going to react when you introduce me," she said sadly.

He knew that she was probably right. His parents weren't exactly thrilled about his third marriage and divorce. Chances were that they'd probably react the same way about his fourth.

"And did you really want me to put you in that situation?" Wilson asked her.

Debbie didn't respond. She just kept the same injured look on her face.

"Debbie, I'm forty years old. I don't need my parents' blessing to get married," Wilson told her.

"Did you ever think that maybe _I_ wanted it?" she snapped.

"I'm planning on spending the rest of my life with you. You don't think that includes your family?" she demanded of him.

"Of course I do," he replied.

"Well… then—" she began.

"But that doesn't give you the right to speak to my sister that way," he said firmly, cutting her off before she could continue.

This time, it was Debbie's turn to be caught off guard. Her lips parted, stunned as her eyes widened a bit in disbelief.

Wilson then got up from the chair, placing his hands on his hips.

"I'm telling Sophie that we're keeping the date that we have, and that she shouldn't change her wedding plans," he stated.

"And you should apologize to her," he added before he left her office. 

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**THURSDAY MORNING, THREE DAYS LATER:**

House was in his private office, throwing out most of his mail that he had found on his desk that morning when Cuddy walked through the glass doors.

"Need you in the Clinic today," she stated in an overly professional manner.

House looked up from his mail and gazed at her. She was standing ramrod straight, wearing a black chanel suit with white trim and a pair of black stilettos.

He couldn't help trace her luscious curves with his eyes. Having memorized every inch of her body, he could tell that despite the fact that she still wasn't really showing just yet, her pregnancy had brought subtle changes to her frame: Her breasts were fuller, her hips seemed rounder, her cheeks glowed.

Of course, the flush in her face could be the anger she was most likely still feeling because he had hid the truth from her about Cate Milton.

They had barely spoken to each other for the last three days.

The truth was that they had barely seen each other for the last three days. House's latest case had been particularly challenging, keeping him occupied and hidden away in his office most of the time while his team ran tests and dealt with the patient.

By the time he came home each night, leaving his team to continue their duties, it was well after ten pm and Cuddy was already asleep in their bed.

And each night for the last three days, he had slipped into the bed next to her, silently, trying not to wake her. As he did so, she remained in a deep sleep, not stirring the slightest when his weight sank the mattress.

But House had a sneaking suspicion that she was indeed awake and just didn't want to turn around to face him.

As Cuddy stood there in front of him, waiting for his response to her order to go down to the Clinic, House knew that he should apologize to Cuddy for keeping his therapy sessions with Cate a secret.

But something inside his brain convinced him that she would either not accept his apology or not believe it for a minute.

Either way, he didn't like the result.

He nodded. "Ok," he replied simply.

Cuddy arched her eyebrow. "That's it? You're not gonna come up with some kind of excuse?" she asked in slight irritation.

"Do you want me to?" he asked her in a low voice.

Cuddy exhaled. "…No," she said, disappointed.

"I'll be down in a few minutes," he said to her gruffly.

Her heart sank as she left his office, her heels clicking against the linoleum floor as she headed down the hallway.

She knew that hardly speaking to him for the past three days was going to make things incredibly awkward between them.

But she had needed time to think.

And now that she had, she was sure that if she ordered him to go down to the Clinic, that he would at least attempt to weasel his way out of it, thereby provoking some kind of argument between them, which could lead to a real talk.

But if House refused to fight with her and only did as she told him to, she had no idea how she was going to deal with him. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

That afternoon, a little after five pm, Wilson, House and were standing by the charge nurse's station in the Clinic. Wilson was leaning against the desk, watching House sign off on his and Sophie's final patient for the day.

"Make sure you note latex allergy in the patient's chart," House ordered Sophie.

"Already did," she replied, pointing to where she had written the allergy.

House squinted his eyes, grimacing at her scrawl in the chart.

"That says _'latex?_' I thought it said '_labia,'_" he commented.

"Yeah. I wrote that the patient is allergic to 'labia,'" she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"I've seen weirder things," House commented.

"Name one," she challenged, her lips turning up at the corners.

"Had a patient who shoved an MP3 player up his ass," House replied, without missing a beat.

Sophie paused, a contemplative look on her face.

"… The ear buds too?" she asked.

Wilson couldn't help but chuckle at how only after a few days of working alongside House, Sophie managed to keep up with him.

"She's not nearly as annoying as you are," House said to Wilson, trying not to smirk at her joke.

"Glad to hear it," Wilson replied flatly.

"So did Debbie apologize to you?" Wilson asked Sophie, turning towards her.

"… Yeah, she did," Sophie said.

"Good," Wilson said.

"…You sure you're doing the right thing by taking my side over hers?" she asked him with uncertainty.

"I'm not taking sides. She was wrong to tell you that you had to change your wedding date to accommodate us," Wilson stated.

"_Ruh- roh!_" House said in his best Scooby- Doo imitation, becoming slightly interested in their conversation.

"It's not that simple," Sophie said. "She's gonna be your wife. You should probably defend her over your sister."

Wilson shook his head a bit. "You... _WANT_ me to take her side?" he asked in surprise.

"I'm not saying that. What I'm saying is that if you wanted to avoid a fight, you could have told her that you spoke to me about it… and that I refused to give in…" she began to explain in a leading tone.

"So in other words make up a _lie_ so I look like the good guy," Wilson clarified.

"Everybody lies," Sophie said, with a shrug.

Wilson turned his head to House, his expression deadpan.

"This is your influence, I take it," Wilson said.

House sniffed loudly. "I'm so proud," he declared dramatically, clutching his chest.

Sophie grinned and stuck her tongue out at Wilson, who laughed in response.

Still laughing, Wilson caught House sneaking a glance at Cuddy through the glass walls of her office. House could see that she was talking to one of the male interns and signing some papers for him.

"So how long are you going to keep avoiding her?" Wilson asked, jutting her chin towards Cuddy's office.

House kept his gaze on her for a moment longer before looking back at the pile of charts on the desk, wondering if it was worth seeing another Clinic patient just to avoid this conversation with Wilson.

"I'm not avoiding her. I'm doing my job," House muttered.

"Yes, you're _SO_ dedicated to Clinic duty that you can't take two minutes to tell Cuddy that you're sorry for lying to her," Wilson remarked sarcastically.

"I'm surprised you didn't tell her for me. And that conversation will _NOT_ take two minutes," House said.

"_She's_ miserable. _You're_ miserable. Just go in there, swallow your pride and get it over with. Like ripping off a band- aid," Wilson advised him.

"Ooh a medical metaphor. How clever of you," he quipped in irritation.

"Will you talk some sense into him?" Wilson told his sister with a sigh before leaving the Clinic and the two of them at the charge nurse's station.

House watched Wilson leave the Clinic. He then turned to Sophie.

"Don't—" he began.

"I'm not saying a word," she assured him, interrupting his train of thought.

House nodded. "I was right. You're no way near as annoying as your brother."

Sophie smiled a bit. "I'll take that as a compliment."

Just then, Chase limped into the Clinic area, holding a patient's chart from the NICU in his hand.

He looked chic yet casual, wearing a pair of brand new jeans, a black button down shirt with two white embroidered accents running parallel down the length of it, and a pair of black shoes. He had used a touch of product in his hair, which was styled in a neat yet tousled manner, and his face was sporting a day's growth of scruff.

Sophie smiled as soon as she laid eyes on him, wanting nothing more than to pull him into one of the exam rooms for a long quickie.

"Got a case," Chase announced to House as he got closer to them.

House raised his eyebrow and took the file that Chase was holding out for him.

As House read through the symptoms of a two week old baby girl that was brought in for a fever of unknown origin, Chase winked at Sophie and flashed her one of his patented dazzling smiles.

Sophie bit her lip and grinned, feeling the usual delicious tingle pass through her that she always did from him. The touch of cologne that he must have just recently put on when he changed engulfed her senses.

"Cool," House commented, rather impressed at the case Chase had handed him.

He then closed the file and turned to Sophie.

"See ya," he said simply as he left both Chase and Sophie at the desk and headed out of the Clinic and off to the NICU.

"I think you actually impressed him," Sophie commented.

Chase smirked. "I think the case impressed him, not me," he said dryly.

"Well you impressed _ME_," she replied. "You look and smell great. Got a hot date or something?" she teased.

Chase looked at her in bewilderment.

"Honey, don't you remember? I'm having dinner with Cameron tonight in Manhattan," he said.

Sophie's smile immediately disappeared from her face.

"…You never told me that," she managed to say.

"Yes I did," he replied, a bit defensively.

A curt chuckle escaped her lips. "I think I would've remembered if you told me you were going into the city to meet your ex for dinner," she stated.

"I'm sure I told you," he insisted.

Sophie swallowed, trying to keep her cool. The Clinic was still crowded with patients, doctors and nurses, and she didn't want to have an argument with Chase right in the middle of it.

"What time are you meeting her?" she asked calmly.

"Seven. We're going to Nobu," Chase replied.

"Nobu, huh? How romantic," she snarked in disgust.

"It's not romantic. It's just dinner," Chase muttered.

"Dinner at Nobu isn't _just_ dinner," she remarked.

"_YOU'RE_ the one who said you wanted me to go to dinner with her by myself so I can say a proper good- bye to her," he reminded her, becoming a bit agitated.

"Yeah, but I didn't think you'd '_forget_' to tell me about it," she shot back.

"You think I didn't tell you on purpose?!" he asked incredulously.

Sophie took a breath and exhaled, refusing to answer his question.

Because she didn't know the answer.

"She invited both of us. Does she know I'm not coming?" she asked instead as calmly as she could, keeping a penetrating gaze on him.

Chase looked away from her stare.

"… she didn't ask," he mumbled.

"Right," she stated with an edge to her voice.

"Sophie, I didn't intentionally keep this from you," Chase stated firmly.

Sophie clicked her tongue and gave him a snide smile.

"You'd better go now if you want to beat the traffic," she said, bitingly.

Chase tightened his jaw.

"Fine," he said curtly, turning around and limping out of the Clinic through the glass doors.

Sophie kept up her stoic façade until Chase rounded the corner of the hallway and was out of sight.

She then slumped her shoulders miserably, a frown forming on her entire face.

"You ok?" a male voice suddenly asked from behind her.

Sophie spun around to see that Danny was standing only a few feet away from her. She immediately turned away from him and back to the pile of charts in front of her, pretending to be searching through them.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied curtly.

Danny stepped closer to her.

"Wanna talk about it?" he asked, now standing next to her.

"There's nothing to talk about," she said, in a clipped tone.

"I… couldn't help overhear what happened," he said gently.

"I'm sure you couldn't," she snapped.

"Well, if you've got nothing else to do tonight, you could always come to my apartment," he offered.

Sophie turned to him again, completely stunned at his bold statement.

"..._What_?"

"It's Thursday night. Poker night with the guys at my place. I'm sure they'll be glad to see you again," he explained in a friendly tone.

Sophie laughed. "They're that anxious for me to take their rolls?" she asked in disbelief.

"I think they actually had fun losing to you," he replied.

He then took a well- timed pause.

"… We all did," he replied a bit shyly.

Sophie's face softened a bit. The fringe of his sandy brown hair was hanging adorably over his eyes and he wore a sweet smile on his face.

"Danny, that's nice of you… but I don't think Robbie will be too happy if I go to your place for another round," she told him.

"He didn't seem to care how you felt about him going out to dinner with his ex tonight," Danny pointed out.

"You really don't know enough about this situation to make a judgment about it," she told him, becoming a bit defensive once more.

"Maybe not…. but I know what I heard," he said, his eyes gazing into hers.

"We start at seven if you change your mind," he told her before leaving her at the desk. 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

About an hour later, Cuddy entered the NICU.

House was standing over a two week old baby girl, staring at her intently. She was clad only in a diaper laying in one of the NICU's bassinettes. She had two IVs—one in her arm and one in the back of her hand—and a heart monitor affixed to her chest.

Despite her incredibly conflicting emotions, she couldn't help but admire him as she always did whenever he was focused on a case, blocking out everything else in the world.

"What are you doing down here?" Cuddy asked him in a raspy voice.

House turned his attention away from the baby and towards Cuddy only for a moment before gazing back down at the newborn.

"Chase caught a case. Gave it to me," he said.

"Any idea what's wrong with her?" she asked softly, approaching him slowly.

"A lot of ideas. No answers yet," he replied.

Cuddy nodded. "Well… I'll leave you alone then," she replied, about to turn around.

"You didn't come down here to leave me alone," he said gruffly, before she could walk away.

"You came down here to yell at me, but you don't want to argue in front of the children," he said, jutting his chin at the bassinets filled with babies in front of him.

She smiled slightly at his witticism.

"I didn't come down here to yell at you," she told him.

"That's too bad. It would've been a pleasant change from the silent treatment you've been giving me for the past three days," he muttered.

"I needed some time to think," she told him, maintaining her calm.

"…And now you're done thinking," he surmised.

"Yes," she replied.

House tried to push down the feeling of dread that was rising within him.

"So should I call Chase, Foreman and Wilson to help me move my stuff back into my old apartment?" he asked, petrified at the answer.

"No," she said.

Cuddy then straightened her posture just a bit and locked her soft, yet strong blue- grey eyes on his.

"You're going to go up to Cate Milton's office and tell her that you want to continue your sessions with her," Cuddy told him quietly.

House merely stared back at her, feeling as if he had entered the Twilight Zone.

"You want me to _continue the therapy_," he clarified.

"You obviously went to her for a reason. You thought she could help you," Cuddy said.

"You're ok with the fact that I confided in someone else? Some other woman instead of you?" House asked, hoping he wasn't pushing his luck.

"The only way I can be ok with this is if I know that you're doing it to somehow make your life better," Cuddy confessed.

"Because if you're trying to do that… then you're trying to make _our_ lives better, too," she continued.

"And if you tell her that you're going to continue the sessions... I'll know that you are," she finished.

He gazed at her for only a moment before he limped over to the phone that was mounted on the wall of the NICU.

He dialed Cate's extension from memory. After two rings, Cate's assistant picked up.

"Yes, this is Dr. Gregory House…" he began, locking eyes with Cuddy as he spoke into the phone.

"Can you tell Dr. Milton that I'll be seeing her on Monday morning for our regular session?" he asked the woman on the other end.

A soft smile formed on Cuddy's features.

"Great. I'll see her then," House said into the phone before hanging up.

He then crossed the room back to Cuddy, closing the distance between them.

"Does this get me out of Clinic duty?" he asked, gazing into her eyes, which were now sparkling once again.

She grinned. "Not a chance," she replied, before pulling him closer to brush her lips against his for a soft and tender kiss. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------ 

A little after seven that evening, Danny smiled in triumph as he dragged all the chips he had just won off his friends closer to him.

"'Bout time you got chips," his friend John muttered, watching his money get pulled away from him.

He smirked. "All we need now is a hot girl with her tits in our faces serving us free drinks," he said.

Keith and Rich, Danny's other two friends, laughed in agreement.

Just then, Danny heard a knock at his door.

"Excuse me. I think that's our hot girl," Danny said before excusing himself.

Keith, Rich and John exchanged incredibly confused glances as Danny all but skipped to his front door, knowing exactly who would be on the other side. He raked his hand through his hair once before opening it.

And when he did, he felt his cock twitch in his pants.

Sophie was on the other side of the door, wearing a form fitting low cut black camisole that showed off the swells of her breasts, a pair of hip hugging faded jeans and black high heels. Her long, dark wavy hair was down about her shoulders.

"Had a feeling you'd show up," Danny commented with a sexy smile.

She lifted the hem of her camisole up slightly, exposing her waist, her hip, and a section of her taut abdomen, as she revealed a rather thick folded pile of twenties that were tucked into the low waistband of the front of her jeans.

Danny's eyes traced over the curve of her hip and the wad of cash she had pressed against it.

"Got room for one more?" she asked him in a sultry tone.

He looked back up at her face, his dimple deepening as his smile broadened.

"Always," he replied, backing up to let her into his apartment.

TBC…


	26. Chapter 26

**HI EVERYONE!!**

**THANKS SO MUCH FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL POSTS!!**

**HERE'S ANOTHER LONG CHAPTER. WANT TO MOVE THE STORY ALONG... **

**AND INCREASE THE TENSION...**

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**CHAPTER 26: Please read and comment.**

At around ten minutes after seven, Chase rounded the corner on 57th street in midtown Manhattan.

As he limped closer towards Nobu, passing other people walking briskly down the crowded street, he could see Cameron waiting for him outside of the restaurant, looking down the opposite side of the street for him.

"Cameron!" Chase called out to her to get her attention.

She turned her head towards her name being called out, her long, blond hair cascading over her shoulder as she did. She smiled immediately and waved when she laid eyes on him and began to walk towards him.

Chase's smile broadened as he reached her in the middle of the street. He kissed her cheek, taking in the scent of her cherry blossom perfume.

"I feel like I'm underdressed," Chase commented with an impish smile as his eyes swept over her.

She was wearing a simple, black sleeveless form fitting shift dress with a scoop neck and a hem above her knee. Her black opened toed pumps completed her elegant look.

"Stop that. You look great," she said, grinning at him, admiring how good he looked in his jeans and button down.

"Are you hungry?" he asked.

"Famished," she replied eagerly.

They walked back up the street and into the Japanese restaurant, which was very crowded. There were many people milling around the bar area, enjoying various cocktails. Chase admired how the simple and clean authentic architecture of the restaurant with it's dark brown woods and black lacquer accents mixed so seamlessly with a chic Manhattan style.

"I've never been here. You come here a lot?" Chase asked her.

"Not a lot. It's very difficult to get a reservation," she replied.

Chase smirked, noting that the tone of her voice seemed more wistful than casual.

"You're gonna miss this," Chase stated.

"There _ARE_ restaurants in Africa, you know," she quipped.

Chase chuckled. "Feel like a drink?" he asked.

"Sure."

Chase placed his hand on the small of her back and somehow managed to lead her over to the bar area around the dense crowds. Cameron gave him a sympathetic smile when they both realized that no one was going to move out of the way for them, despite the fact that Chase was using a cane.

When they finally made it to the bar, they found one empty high backed stool. Chase immediately offered it to Cameron.

"You can sit," she told him.

"I'm fine," he said dismissively.

Cameron sighed as she took the stool . "Someone should really get up and offer their seat to you," she told him near his ear.

"Yeah, well, not everyone thinks like you do," he said.

Cameron smiled at that. She kept her eyes on his handsome face when he proceeded to order them a bottle of Veramonte Merlot, her favorite red wine.

"You remembered," she said softly.

Chase smiled at her fondly and shrugged. "You used to drink a glass of it almost every night, except when you were in the mood for a Pinot Grigot."

She returned his smile a bit shyly, gazing into his aquamarine eyes probably a bit longer than she should have.

"… How come Sophie couldn't make it?" she said, ending what seemed like an intimate feel between them.

He let out a sound somewhere between a breath and a laugh.

"That's… a long story," he said tentatively.

"Is everything ok?" she asked with concern.

"Yeah, everything's fine. We just got into a little argument before I left," he explained.

Cameron nodded, wondering if he was going to elaborate on that. But when he didn't, she looked away from him, her eyes focusing on the bartender pouring a bit of Merlot in Chase's glass from the new bottle he had ordered for him to taste.

Chase immediately slid the glass over to Cameron. "I trust you," he said.

Cameron swirled the glass and brought it up to her nose, taking in the wine's strong aromatic cherry scent. As she tasted it, the flavors of blackberries, mint and oak danced on her tongue.

"Delicious," she told the bartender.

The bartender nodded and poured more into her glass, and then into Chase's empty one.

After clinking their glasses together and taking long sips, they both put their glasses back down on the bar. Chase stared at her, full of anticipation for what he was about to tell her.

"I actually asked Sophie to marry me this past weekend," Chase said.

Cameron's eyes went wide. For a moment, she was too stunned to speak.

"… That's… wonderful!" she finally said, leaning forward and kissing his cheek.

Chase beamed. "Thank you," he said, accepting her kiss.

"Did you set a date?" she asked.

"October 15," he replied, leaning his elbow on the bar and facing her.

Cameron arched her eyebrow. "…Of this year?" she clarified.

"Yep."

"Wow... That was fast," she remarked, looking even more surprised than when Chase first told her the news.

"Why do you say that?" he asked, his brow furrowing.

"You only met her last October. And you only moved in with her a couple of weeks ago," she replied with a shrug.

Chase was pretty sure he didn't like where she was going with this. "So?" he asked.

"You don't think you're rushing things a little?" she asked.

By now, his smile had completely faded.

"No," he stated.

Just then, the host called out the name "Cameron," over the din of the restaurant. Catching the host's eye, she waved at him, took her glass and got off the stool.

"Our table's ready," she told Chase.

Chase exhaled and took his glass with him as he and another waiter carried the rest of the wine bottle and followed her to the table.  

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A few moments later, Chase and Cameron had settled into their small rectangular table for two. A lotus flower floating in a small round vase lit from the bottom adorned the center of the table, adding even more ambience to the dim, romantic lighting of the room, as did their Merlot bottle and glasses. Chase's rosewood cane was hanging over the back of the chair.

Chase was peering over his menu at Cameron curiously.

"You have to try the Yellowtail. It's the best I've ever had," she told him, reading over the sashimi choices.

"Why do you think I'm rushing things with Sophie?" he asked.

Cameron looked up from her menu. She pressed her lips together, thinking of the most diplomatic way to tell him what she was thinking.

"Marriage… is a big step. I just think you guys should get used to living together before you jump in with both feet," she said.

"It's really not that much different from what we're doing now. Just a piece of paper," he replied.

"And a promise to spend the rest of your lives together," she reminded him, looking back down at her menu.

"And I _WANT_ to spend the rest of my life with her," Chase reminded her, trying to keep the defensive edge out of his voice.

Cameron exhaled, looking back up at him again.

"I know you love her," she began. "But she's only twenty- four. She's still in school—"

"People can't get married when they're in school?" he interrupted her.

"… I just don't see why you should rush into marriage," she commented, looking away from him for the third time.

If she was anyone else, Chase would dismiss her comments as just opinionated crap and ignore them.

But he knew her way too well to think that her own situation didn't have something to do with her viewpoint about his engagement.

"What's going on?" he asked her pointedly.

Cameron looked up yet again from her menu to see Chase waiting patiently for her to tell him once and for all why she insisted on meeting him for dinner tonight.

"…I don't know if I can do this," she admitted meekly.

Chase wasn't surprised. He gave her a crooked smile.

"Yeah, I figured you were having second thoughts," he said.

"I've been thinking about everything you said at the painting party… about the immunizations, about how there's no modern medical facilities…" Cameron began, gesturing with her hands as she spoke, a worry line forming on her forehead.

"Are you're scared that you're gonna get sick?" he asked.

Cameron shook her head. "… Not… me…" she said, unable to look him in the eye.

Chase's smile became softer as the realization dawned on him. But he waited until she finished to give her his opinion. Cameron leaned forward across the table.

"When Sebastian was our patient, we treated him for a resistant strain of TB. He almost died. The only reason why he didn't was because House was his doctor," Cameron reminded him.

"You were his doctor, too, if I remember," Chase said.

"What if something happens to him again? House won't be there this time," she argued.

"But _YOU'LL_ be there," Chase told her.

"I'm not House and there's no MRI, no CT, no high- tech lab—" Cameron went on.

"You're in love with Sebastian," Chase stated simply.

Cameron stopped in mid sentence, staring at him.

"You're in love with him… and you're petrified that you're gonna lose him," Chase clarified.

Cameron drew in a breath and exhaled, nodding slowly in agreement, still amazed at how perceptive Chase was.

"So you think it's better if you don't go with him to Africa… and then you'll break up… and then if something _DOES_ happen to him, you won't feel the same pain of losing him like you did with your husband, because you won't be together," Chase said.

Cameron felt her embarrassment creep up her neck. She could only give him a tiny, sheepish smile, which quickly faded as his correct assessment of the situation sunk in.

"That's very logical thinking," Chase commented, witnessing her embarrassment.

Cameron snorted. "Yeah, well…" she trailed off, reaching for her wine glass.

He then reached across the table and took her hand before she could touch the glass.

"The problem is…love's not logical," he told her, looking into her bright, yet saddened green eyes.

"I already lost someone I loved to a terminal illness. I don't know if I can do it again," she admitted, her voice quavering as she gripped his hand a bit.  

"I understand that you're trying to protect yourself… but you can't hold your life back for what _MIGHT_ happen," he said, rubbing the top of her hand soothingly with his thumb.

"But things _DO_ happen. Look what happened to you," she pointed out, jutting her chin at his leg.

"And you think that's why I proposed to Sophie so quickly. That I'm scared about being alone and in pain for the rest of my life," Chase said.

"…Am I right?" Chase asked.

Chase paused momentarily, thinking of Sophie and how he regretted leaving the hospital without resolving their argument.

"I'm gonna be in pain for the rest of my life," he said plainly, taking another pause.

"…But I'm not scared anymore," he admitted. 

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Around two hours later, Sophie was still at Danny's apartment, playing Texas Hold 'Em with Danny and his poker buddies.

She was up almost two grand, but between the filthy stench of the cigars that all the guys were smoking and the fact that she still hadn't heard from Chase since their fight in the Clinic earlier, she wasn't enjoying herself as much as she thought she would.

And she also knew that she had to get home before Chase did to strip out of her clothes and shower to get the smell of cigars off her skin and hair.

The air was so thick with smoke that she even felt it in her mouth and on her teeth. She'd have to brush and rinse, too.

Danny was having a particularly good night at the table. He was up six hundred dollars, mostly won off his friends. Sophie had actually mucked a few hands during game play, trying to convince herself that the smoke was distracting her.

But she knew that it was really her guilt about coming back to Danny's place that was to blame.

"All right, sweetheart. You've been check raising for too long. I'm All In," Danny stated, pushing all his chips forward into the center of the table.

The rest of the guys, who had folded early on, turned to Sophie to see what she would do. Already knowing what she had in the hole, she glanced at her cards anyway, as if she was contemplating a move.

She then scanned the five community cards in front of her. The river had already turned, and she could tell by Danny's confident expression that he had at least a pair in the hole, possibly making three of a kind with one of the other cards on the table.

"You know… they say that there's only two scenarios that you should go All In. When you've got the nuts… or when you're bluffing," Sophie said casually.

Keith, one of Danny's friends, grimaced. "What's 'the nuts?'" he asked.

"Best possible hand in a round," she explained.

"Well, how do you know if you've got the nuts?" Keith asked.

A smile curled at her lips.

"You'll know," she said vaguely.

She then pushed all her chips into the middle. "Call," she said.

Danny then turned over his cards, which were a nine of spades and a nine of hearts.

"Trip nines," he announced in an overly suave manner, gesturing to the nine of diamonds in the community cards. "Sorry, babe."

"Yeah, I figured you had the nines…" she said.

She then slowly turned over her cards, revealing that she had an Eight of spades and a Jack of Spades.

Danny's triumphant smile quickly faded when he realized that with the community cards, she had a straight, which beat his three of a kind.

He glanced up at her. Her lips were still turned up at the corners.

Keith leaned over to Danny, who was still staring at his hand, wondering how he could have possibly lost.

"Guess you don't have the nuts," Keith commented, causing the other guys to laugh at Danny' expense.

Just then, Sophie's cell phone rang in her pocket. She took it out and felt her stomach rise into her throat when she saw that it was Chase calling her.

"Excuse me," she said, getting up from the table.

"You can go into my room if you need privacy," Danny offered.

Sophie nodded gratefully and headed into Danny's room, which was sparsely decorated and surprisingly neat. Once she closed the door behind her, she flipped open her phone.

"Hi," she said softly into the phone.

"Hey baby," Chase replied.

She tried to swallow the achingly guilty feeling inside her at the sensuous, loving sound of Chase's voice over the phone.

"Aren't you at dinner?" she asked, hoping that her own voice wasn't betraying her.

"Yeah… I just wanted to tell you that we're stopping somewhere else for dessert…" he began.

"…And that I'm sorry that I didn't tell you about dinner and that I walked out of the hospital angry…"

"And that I love you so very much," he finished sincerely.

She pressed her lips together. "I love you, too," she said, a bit apologetically.

"Are you ok?" he asked with tender concern.

"Yeah… I just miss you," she whispered.

"Well then how do you feel about make- up sex?" he asked hopefully.

Sophie laughed. "I'm generally in favor of it," she told him.

Chase grinned. "Glad to hear it," he replied.

"You're really an opportunist, aren't you?" she teased.

"And you love it," he said.

"Yeah, I do," she admitted, the warmth of his love mixing in with the guilt churning inside her.

"I should be home by eleven thirty," he said.

"Ok. Drive safe," she told him.

"I will," he replied.

They said their good- byes and hung up. Sophie hadn't even realized that while she was talking to Chase, she had sank down onto Danny's neatly made double bed.

She looked around the room and realized that this was the last place she wanted to be.

She got up off the bed, walked out of Danny's bedroom and back to the poker table, where Danny and the rest of the guys were waiting for her.

"Sorry guys. I'm cashing out. I'm afraid I'm calling it a night," she stated.

"…I'll walk you out," Danny said, trying to hide his disappointment. 

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"You really slow rolled me with that straight," Danny said as they walked together in the warm, night air towards her car, which she had parked in front of his building.

"'Slow rolled?' I'm impressed," she said with a laugh at his use of a poker term.

"Hey, I've been paying attention," he told her playfully.

"You didn't have to walk me to my car," she told him as stopped in front of it.

"What kind of gentleman would I be if I let you go to your car alone this time of night?" he said gallantly.

Sophie checked her watch, avoiding how he was gazing down at her.

"Chase doesn't know you came here tonight, does he?" he asked, his eyes penetrating hers.

Sophie shook her head slowly.

"No," she admitted shamefully.

"There's no reason for you to feel guilty about it. You didn't do anything wrong," he told her.

"I don't know if he's gonna see it that way," she said with a nervous laugh.

"He's not exactly innocent either. He never told you he was going to dinner with Cameron," Danny pointed out.

"Two wrongs don't make a right," she stated.

"…No… but it sure feels good," he said with a wry smile, his dimple making another appearance.

At first, Sophie didn't know what to make of his remark. But when she saw the humor in his eyes, she laughed again.

"Well… thanks for the game," she said cordially.

"I'm glad you showed up," he said softly, tracing her lovely face with his hazel eyes.

"So am I. I had fun," she said with a friendly smile.

As they smiled at each other surrounded by the ambient light of the street lamps, a silence washed over them.

Taking advantage of the moment, Danny leaned closer to her, closed his eyes and brushed his soft lips against hers.

But as she felt his lips, she pulled back from him, placing her hand on his chest to stop him.

"Danny, no—" she began.

"You can't tell me that you don't feel something between us," he said almost pleadingly, barely above a whisper, his eyes full of longing for her.

"Yes. I _can_," she stated firmly.

She then unlocked her car, opened the door and got inside.

"G'night, Dan," she told him before closing the door and driving away, leaving him alone on the street. 

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A little after ten that night, Cameron walked into her apartment, followed by Chase, who was limping behind her. They had gone around the corner to the Plaza Hotel to enjoy dessert, after dinner drinks and past memories in the Rose Club.

"You want a drink or something?" Cameron asked, tossing her beaded clutch purse onto the couch.

"No, I should really get going. I told Sophie I'd be home by eleven- thirty," he said, checking his watch.

Cameron then turned to face him with a melancholy smile.

"…So then I guess this is it," she said in a resigned manner.

"...We both have cell phones. And there's always IM and Facebook," he reminded her, limping across her living room towards her.

"I don't have a Facebook account," she admitted.

"Yeah, neither do I," he replied.

They both laughed at that. "I'll get one," she assured him.

"Me too."

Their smiles faded as they gazed at each other. As Cameron's lips began to quiver, Chase pulled her closer to him and engulfed her in a hug, the smell of her cherry blossom perfume engulfing his senses once more.

"I'm really gonna miss you," Cameron said against his chest.

"I'll miss you, too," he replied sadly.

They stood in her living room, amidst suitcases and cardboard boxes that she had already packed, holding each other as tightly as they possibly could.

Neither one of them was sure how much time had passed as they held each other. Chase rubbed her back softly over her dress, his fingertips grazing her skin every once in a while. He couldn't deny how good her lithe body felt pressed up against his, how well their frames still fit together after all this time.

After a few minutes, Cameron finally looked up at him. Her eyes were rimmed with tears.

"I don't want to go," she whimpered.

"You have to," he whispered gently.

"What if we lose touch? What if I never see you again?" she asked sadly.

"You mean you're not coming to my wedding?" he asked her with an adorable smile, trying to cheer her up.

Cameron sniffed and managed a tiny smile of her own.

"I'll be there," she told him.

"Good," he said, tenderly brushing a lock of her hair out of her face and tucking it behind her ear.

"…Why didn't Sophie come tonight?" Cameron asked.

Chase felt butterflies in his stomach at her question.

"She didn't think that I'd be able to say good- bye to you the way I wanted to if she did," Chase confessed.

"How did you want to say good- bye to me?" she asked, her green eyes sparkling up at him.

Without another word, Chase crashed his lips down onto hers, passionately enveloping her mouth with his own. She moaned against his lips desperately, his kiss moving through every inch of her.

They brushed their lips over each other's hungrily, his hands exploring every inch of her face, then raking through her hair. She wrapped her arms tighter around his neck and did the same, her fingers trying to memorize the feel of his scruff and the soft blond locks that draped the back of his neck.

After what seemed like an eternity, they finally broke off their kiss, the need for air overtaking them. As they gasped, they pressed their foreheads against each other's, closing their eyes. They stood their holding each other, their bodies shuddering with desire and heartache.  

"… You should go," Cameron told him softly.

Chase nodded against her forehead, his eyes still closed, not moving an inch.

"Go… before we both make a huge mistake," she insisted.

He opened his eyes and backed up slightly. He regained his composure and backed up.

She walked him to the door in silence. Once they reached it, he gazed down at her one more time.

"Have a safe flight," he managed to say.

"Thank you," she replied.

He then walked out of her apartment, leaving Cameron alone with her boxes and the taste of him on her lips.

And as Chase slowly limped down the hallway towards the elevators, rubbing her lipstick off his mouth, he hoped that he'd have the opportunity to shower and brush his teeth before Sophie greeted him upon his return home.

TBC…


	27. Chapter 27

**HI EVERYONE!!**

**HERE'S ANOTHER LONG CHAPTER. :)**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 27: Please read and comment.**

By the time Chase got home, it was after midnight. All the lights were off in the house, except for the halogen bulbs under the kitchen cabinets, which Sophie always left on for him when he came home late.

The house was quiet. Sophie was most likely already sleeping.

Which was fine with Chase.

The entire way home, Chase rationalized his kiss with Cameron over and over. By the time he had reached the outskirts of Princeton, he had convinced himself that it was just a good- bye kiss, and nothing more.

And despite the incredible passion that surged between them as their lips devoured each other's, it was merely an emotional moment between two people who were caught up in the possibility that they would most likely never see each other again.

Which is why Sophie never needed to know about it.

The kiss had occupied his thoughts so much that he had forgotten to take his fourth and final dose of Ultram for the day.

And now he was paying for it. His ankle was throbbing mercilessly. More so than usual.

He was sure that the increased pain level was due to the massive amount of guilt he was feeling.

Having been through seminary, Chase was pretty sure that this was some form of divine retribution for his sins.

But as he tossed his keys into the pink glass key bowl that Sophie kept on the kitchen counter and limped towards the stairs, all he could think about was how the hell he was going to make it up to the second floor.

He took a deep breath, grabbed onto the handrail and began his ascent up the stairs, slowly, one step at a time.

Each step was torturous. He had to put some weight on his left foot, despite the help of his cane. And as he did, the pain radiated up from his ankle all the way up through his calf to his knee.

It wasn't until he had reached the first landing that he felt a particularly unforgiving surge of pain blast through his leg, causing him to misstep and slip and ungracefully tumble down the stairs, bumping his mouth hard against one step on the way down and finally banging his head on the tile floor at the bottom. 

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Sophie suddenly opened her eyes and immediately sat up straight in bed, having been awoken by a loud thumping noise from somewhere downstairs.

"Robbie?" she called out.

When she didn't hear a response, she glanced at the clock, which read 12:15 am. Chase wasn't in the bed with her, and he had told her that he'd be home by eleven- thirty.

She reached for her cell phone, which was on the night- stand next to her. But before she could press the speed dial for Chase's number, she suddenly heard a painful groan come from the same place that she heard the thumping noise.

She frantically threw the covers off her and dashed out of their bedroom, heading for the stairs.

Her face went white when she saw a thin trail of blood on the carpeted steps and Chase clutching his head in pain, only half sitting up on their tile floor.

"Oh god! Robbie, are you ok?" she cried nervously as she hurried barefoot down the steps.

"… I think so…" he groaned, his eyes shut from the various aches and pains he was feeling throughout his body from the fall.

She crouched down next to him and helped him sit up all the way. She gasped aloud when she saw that his lip was bleeding and his teeth were tinged with blood.

"Open your mouth," she ordered him, anxiously.

Chase opened his mouth and Sophie breathed a heavy sigh of relief when she saw that Chase hadn't lost any teeth.

"Oh thank god. You just cut your lip," she said.  

He carelessly wiped off the blood on his lip with his fingertips and looked at it with disdain.

"Great," he muttered.

"Let me see the back of your head," she told him.

Chase leaned forward a bit and she brushed away some of his hair as gently as she could with her fingertips. He had a nice sized bump where his head had hit the tile floor.

She then ran into the kitchen, grabbed a penlight that they always kept in the top junk drawer and ran back to him at the foot of the steps as quickly as she could.

"Open your eyes," she told him.

Chase did as she told him to. She then checked his pupils by flashing the light across his eyes, breathing another sigh of relief when they shrunk from the light.

"What's your name?" she asked him.

"…Sophie," he began in exasperation.

"No, that's _MY_ name. What's _YOUR_ name?" she repeated firmly.

He blinked once, a smile curling at his lips at her insistence.

"Robert Chase," he replied.

"What day of the week is it?" she pressed.

"Thursday. I'm in my house at the bottom of the steps after taking a rather nasty fall and the current President is Barack Obama," he replied, smiling at bit more at her.

"Can you get up?" she asked.

He nodded.

She then slowly helped him to his feet and up the rest of the stairs, holding him securely underneath his armpit and around his back. He leaned on her heavily, his arm wrapped around her shoulder as they ascended the stairs.

By the time she had helped him onto the bed, the pain in his head, his lips and the rest of his muscles from the fall had almost eclipsed the pain in his ankle.

"How did you fall? Did you black out?" Sophie asked him worriedly as she sat down on the bed next to him.

He shook his head. "… Forgot to take my last dose…" he mumbled, almost in embarrassment.

She smiled at him sympathetically, understanding exactly what he meant. She lightly brushed away his hair from his forehead, kissed him there and then kissed his cheek.

"I'll be right back," she told him, leaving him on the bed.

A few short moments later, she returned with a few wet washcloths, two ice packs, and a bottle of water.

Chase had already dug his bottle of Ultram out of his jeans pocket and was just swallowing his pill when she returned. He gratefully took the water from her, took a long swig and placed it back on the night- stand.

She then sat back down next to Chase on the bed, and began to clean the blood off his lips as gently as she could. By now, the bleeding had stopped, but Chase's upper lip was rather swollen.

"Here," she said, attempting to place one of the ice packs on his mouth.

"I'm fine," he said, backing up a bit.

"Stop being stubborn. Your entire upper lip is blown up," she insisted.

He exhaled in defeat and took the ice pack from her, placing it against his lips. He winced at first at how the cold stung his flesh, but eventually he welcomed the feeling.

Sophie propped up one of the pillows on its edge and helped Chase to lean against the headboard. She then took two other pillows and stacked them at the foot of the bed, elevating Chase's left ankle on top of them so the throbbing would subside.

She then moved closer to him and gingerly placed the other ice pack on the bump on his head.

"You've got a pretty big bump back here," Sophie said.

"A bump is good. It means there's less of a chance for concussion," he replied.

"I know that, but it can't feel great," she commented.

"The ice and the Ultram will help," he said, closing his eyes, reaching for her hand.

They shared a few moments of silence, holding hands on the bed, until Sophie spoke up.

"Good thing you kissed Cameron _BEFORE_ this happened, huh?" she remarked.

At that, his eyes snapped open widely and he spun his head around to face her, shocked to see a lopsided grin on her face.

"Be kinda hard to kiss her with a fat lip," she said with amusement.

"…H-how… how did you know?" he stammered.

She took the washcloth off the dresser that she used to clean the blood off his lip and showed it to him. He could see that there was pink mixed in with his blood.

"You didn't wipe all the lipstick off before you came home," she revealed.

Still completely stunned and feeling rather stupid, he just sat there, his lips parted, having no idea what he should do.

"I suppose I should take comfort in the fact that you'd leave a trail like a caterpillar if you ever had an affair," she joked with a shrug, still smirking at him.

Chase couldn't help but laugh at that, which only made his lip hurt more. As he whimpered pathetically from the pain, she took the ice off his mouth gently kissed his lower lip.

"You're really not angry?" he asked.

"I told you to go alone tonight, didn't I? You don't think I knew that you wanted to kiss her good- bye?" she asked back.

"It _WAS_ just a kiss. Nothing else happened—" he began sincerely.

"I know," she replied gently.

Chase gazed into her deep brown eyes, which always seemed to be filled with love for him.

He frowned, for some reason feeling even more ashamed about what had happened with Cameron that evening.

"You wanna lay on me?" she offered.

He nodded contritely.

He then shifted his body down on the bed and lay his head down in her lap, the satin material of her thin strapped periwinkle blue nightie soft and smooth against his face. She held the ice onto his head as gently as she could.

"This's pretty," he murmured, caressing the outer side of her thigh and hip over the fabric.

"I wanted to look nice for you when you came home," she told him softly.

"You always look nice," he said.

He then tightened his arms around her hips and nuzzled his head against her thighs.

"Do you know that I love coming home to you?" he asked her.

"Mhm," she replied with a sad smile, rubbing the back of his neck with her free hand.

As Chase closed his eyes, she decided that he was in too much pain at the moment to tell him that she had gone to Danny's place that night. 

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**NEXT DAY. FRIDAY MORNING.**

It was after eight am and Cuddy was in her bathroom, wearing a white lace bra and matching low rise bikini cut lace panties, scrutinizing her body critically in the large mirror on top of her vanity.

Her more than ample breasts were spilling out over her bra, which was barely hanging on by its last hook. The veins on her chest had become more prominent from the increased blood flow throughout her body from the pregnancy.

And her rounded belly had already expanded over the waistband of her low- rise lace panties.

She turned sideways to gaze at her profile, rubbing her belly softly, wondering if she should look as big as she did at this point in her pregnancy.

The night before, House and her had made love. As always, it had been wonderful. House had the stamina of a much younger man and the eagerness of a teenager when it came to sex. He had explored her entire body wantonly with his hands and mouth, tipping her over the edge twice before giving into his own desires.

But for the first time since she had known him, she had been self- conscious about being naked in front of him.

She had insisted that they have sex with the lights off in the bedroom and that they keep the blanket over both of them. House, of course, had agreed to it, his passion not diminishing in the least as he pulled the blanket over both their bodies and thrust into her, crying out her name into the dark room as he came inside her.

But now, as she looked in the mirror at herself the morning after, she wondered if House would still continue to desire her the same way as the pregnancy continued.

And the fact that he was seeing Cate Milton once a week, who wasn't pregnant and expanding as the days went on, didn't do too much to ease her anxieties.

"_Wow_," House said, suddenly appearing in the doorway in a t- shirt and his plaid pajama pants.

"Looks like my Baby Mama got back," he said, his eyes tracing down her curvier figure.

"_AND_ front," he added.

Cuddy snorted. "That's really not raising my self- esteem at the moment," she muttered.

"It's raising _MINE_," he pointed out, the front of his pajama pants starting to tent out from his hard- on as he checked out her luscious breasts and ass.

He then limped up behind her, wrapped his arms low around her waist and began to brush his lips over the soft skin on her neck.

"Do you think I'm having twins?" Cuddy asked him, still staring at herself in the mirror.

"Why? Because your junk in the trunk has graduated to SUV proportions?" he asked against her neck, his hands now roaming down her hips to her thighs, squeezing them possessively as he did so.

"Look at my stomach," she told him.

House stopped his ministrations for a moment and glanced at her ever so slightly rounded belly in the mirror.

"So?" he shrugged.

"It's… BIG," she stated.

"If you think THAT'S big, I'm dreading the next thirty- five weeks," he told her.

She exhaled in exasperation and picked up her copy of _What to Expect When You're Expecting_ off the counter of the vanity, thrusting it in front of him.

"Look at the picture in the book. I'm bigger than that already," she insisted.

His erection starting to shrink in disappointment, he sighed and narrowed his eyes at the picture on the page in front of him, which was a rough drawing of a naked pregnant woman's profile from neck to thighs who was at five weeks in her pregnancy. The headless woman's belly was hardly protruding and her breasts were slightly augmented.

"It's a sketch done by an illustrator who couldn't hack it as a comic book artist. You're gonna compare yourself to that?" he demanded, tossing the book back onto the vanity.

"Maybe I should get an ultrasound," she suggested, staring at her figure in the mirror again.

"You're only at the end of five weeks. If you _are_ carrying twins, we're not going to be able to see anything yet for at least another week," he reminded her.

He then continued what he had started, kissing her neck once more as he wrapped his arms low around her waist again. This time, he cupped one of her voluptuous breasts over her bra, grazing his thumb across her erect nipple.

Despite how upset she was at her appearance, she actually began to enjoy his touch. She arched her head back against his chest as his hand continued to warm her breast. She pressed back against his now fully erect shaft, letting out a little moan as she did so.

"… Maybe you should ease up on the potato chips and the soda…" he murmured softly against her neck as he tweaked her nipple.

At that, her eyes popped wide open and she spun around to face him.

"Are you saying that I'm _FAT_?!" she demanded sharply.

"_FUCK_," House thought to himself.

"No. I'm just saying that most of what you're eating and drinking is full of sodium, fat and calories. All things that are going to put on weight fast," he replied calmly.

"I can barely keep anything else down!" she exclaimed defensively.

"So then keep eating what you're eating, and stop worrying about your weight," he told her.

"So you _DO_ think I'm fat," she repeated, folding her arms across her chest defiantly.

House forced an exasperated breath out of his lungs, knowing that no matter what he said, he'd already done enough damage.

But true to his nature, he refused to back down.

"_YOU'RE_ the one who said that you think that you're having twins and _YOU'RE_ the one who's scrutinizing every inch of your body," he pointed out.

"For once in your life, can't you just tell me that I look beautiful like any other man would to make their pregnant girlfriend feel better about themselves?" she asked him angrily.

"Even if I did say that, you wouldn't believe me. And you know how much weight you're supposed to be gaining," he said.

She turned away from him in a huff, refusing to admit that he was right.

"So you can either take offense at what I'm telling you… or you can remember that you're a doctor and be scientific about it," he said jutting at the bathroom scale on the floor.

She glanced back at him, exhaled in frustration and reluctantly stepped onto the scale.

Her jaw dropped when she saw the number beneath her.

"_I'VE GAINED SIX POUNDS IN FIVE WEEKS?!_" she exclaimed.

House pursed his lips together, saying nothing.

She then stormed out of the bathroom without another word. House furrowed his brow in curiosity and followed her.

By the time he had found her in the kitchen, she was already throwing out all the potato chip bags that they had in the pantry.

"Hey hey! What are you doing? I eat those, too!" he argued.

"Not anymore," she stated firmly as she tossed the last one in the trash. 

----------------------------------------------------------------- 

Around noon that same day, House and Wilson were sitting at their usual booth in the cafeteria together having lunch.

Wilson glared at House as he stole a handful of French fries off Wilson's plate.

"You know, a funny thing happened the other day. I had lunch with Chase, and he actually ate his _own_ lunch without stealing mine," he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Lisa purged the house of all the junk food because she gained six pounds already. If I'm gonna fill my daily quota for fat, I _HAVE_ to steal from you," House argued logically.

"Oh. Well at least now you have a _REASON_," he said dryly.

"And if you wanted a lunch date that could keep their hands to themselves, then maybe you should have waited for Chase," House quipped.

Wilson furrowed his brow at House's comment.

"What's wrong with you? You're more surly than usual," Wilson commented.

House glanced up at Wilson briefly before looking away from his penetrating gaze.

"…Lisa forgave me," he mumbled.

"That's… _good_, isn't it?" Wilson asked in bewilderment.

"She only forgave me because I promised that I'd go back to seeing Cate on a regular basis," House replied in disgust.

"She _WANTS_ you to continue the therapy?" Wilson clarified in complete surprise.

"She said that I went to Cate to make my life better… and if I want to do that, then I want to make _ALL_ our lives better," House began to explain.

"And if I continue with the sessions, then she knows that that's what I'm trying to do," he finished in annoyance.

Wilson chuckled a bit. "She's clever," he admitted.

"Yeah, _SHE'S_ clever and now _I'M_ stuck shelling out three hundred bucks every Monday morning," House complained.

"Consider yourself lucky. You lied to her and she forgave you," Wilson stated.

House grimaced as he stole more fries off Wilson's plate.

"And you don't give a crap about the money. You just don't want Cate digging up things that you've buried way down deep in your subconscious," Wilson added.

"The way our sessions have been going, Cate better have a really big shovel," House snarked.

"So what do you do? Sit there in silence?" Wilson asked.

"…No," House said, refusing to elaborate.

Wilson nodded with a knowing smirk. "You just give her the briefest answers you possibly can until your time runs out," he said.

"I love how well you know me," House quipped.

"You're already there. Cuddy _WANTS_ you there, and now she's probably expecting some kind of result. You might as well really open up to Cate," Wilson said.

"I was right. Your sister isn't as _NEARLY_ as annoying as you are," House replied.

The two men ate in silence for a moment. Wilson glanced at House a bit nervously as he prepared himself for what he was about to tell him.

"…So my parents are coming in from Manhattan tonight," Wilson began as casually as he could.

House continued to eat his Reuben sandwich, saying nothing.

"We're having dinner at Sophie's place," Wilson added.

House still said nothing.

"… You and Cuddy wanna come?" Wilson asked.

At this, House suddenly became interested. He chewed whatever was left in his mouth and wiped his lips with the sleeve of his blazer.

"You're inviting us for dinner at your sister's house? Even _I_ know that violates some kind of social norm," House commented.

"We're barbecuing. Shouldn't be a problem to throw some more meat on the grill," Wilson said with a shrug.

House's lips curled in a knowing smile.

"Since I know you don't want the pleasure of my company, I can only assume that you're too petrified to tell your parents that you're getting married again without buffer guests," House stated.

"…We're having steak," Wilson replied meekly.

"And _I'M_ the one in therapy?" House asked.

Wilson sighed. "So you'll come?" he asked, almost pleadingly.

"Free steak dinner _AND_ a show? How can I refuse?" House replied, popping another one of Wilson's French fries into his mouth.

TBC…


	28. Chapter 28

**HI EVERYONE!**

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**CHAPTER 28: Please read and comment.**

It was close to seven pm and Chase was scrutinizing himself in front of the mirror in their first floor bathroom.

He smoothed out the collar of his white short sleeved cotton polo shirt and combed through the front of his hair with his fingertips for the tenth time. He then ran his hair over the very thin layer of scruff on his face that had grown in since his shave that morning with a look of doubt in his eyes.

"You think I should shave?" Chase called out from the bathroom.

"You shaved this morning," Sophie called back from the kitchen.

He lifted his chin slightly to get a better look at his upper lip, which was still significantly swollen.

He was still feeling achy and sore from the fall down the steps and even though the bump on his head had shrunk considerably, a dull headache remained.

The dull throb in his ankle wasn't helping, either.

He dug into the pocket of his khaki shorts and opened his bottle of Ultram, considering if he should take two pills instead of his usual one.

But then he quickly dismissed the idea, swallowed only one pill and shoved the bottle back in his pocket.

He took once more glance at himself, seemingly satisfied at what was in the mirror and limped out of the bathroom into the kitchen, where Sophie was finishing up with last minute preparations for their dinner before their guests arrived.

"Maybe I should change shirts," he suggested as he watched her open the oven to check on the roasted potatoes that were warming in there.

"Stop it. You look great. And my parents will love no matter what you're wearing or how much hair you have on your face," she assured him, moving the potatoes around a bit with metal tongs to make sure they warmed evenly.

"You think they'll still love me with a fat lip?" he asked dryly.

Sophie looked up at him and gave him a wry smile. She then closed the oven and took a few steps to him. She caressed his cheek gently, running her thumb as delicately as she could over his still swollen upper lip.

"The swelling's gone down quite a bit, and yes, I do," she replied.

She then kissed him softly on his lower lip and headed for the refrigerator.

"You think I made too much food?" she asked, peering inside the fridge, which was completely filled with the steaks marinating in a pyrex dish and the various side dishes she had prepared.

"House is coming. _Nothing_ is enough," he reminded her.

She turned towards him, about to comment on his statement, and found him scrutinizing his reflection in the door of the microwave. She bit back a laugh at how self- conscious he was being.

"You're really that nervous about meeting my parents? You've spoken to them plenty of times on the phone," she reminded him.

"They've never met me and we're about to tell them we're engaged. And, speaking to them on the phone and meeting them face to face are two different things," Chase replied.

"They've seen pictures of you," Sophie said.

"With or without the cane?" Chase said a bit softer.

At this, Sophie's heart sank, the corners of her mouth turning down. She paused thoughtfully at the refrigerator door before closing it and crossed the room to him. She touched his face to make him turn away from the microwave and towards her.

"They know about your ankle," Sophie told him.

"Do they know that I can't even walk up a flight of stairs without taking my meds?" he mumbled, averting her gaze.

"Stop this," she said gently but insistently, placing both of her hands on his face to make him look at her.

He exhaled, his chest rising and falling as he did so, his mouth twisting in a frown.

"You just slipped. It was an accident," she told him.

"Which wouldn't have happened if I hadn't kissed Cameron in the first place," he muttered.

"Well, you did, so that's a moot point," she replied simply.

"I still can't believe how forgiving you were about the whole thing," he commented.

"There was nothing to forgive," she told him.

He smiled sadly as his eyes traced over her. Her long, wavy hair was pulled back in a low ponytail with loose locks elegantly framing her face.

His eyes then darted down to her figure. She was wearing a white apron over her empire waist sleeveless top and mini skirt. It covered her from the middle of her breasts to the middle of her thighs and didn't close all the way in the back.

"You look sexy in an apron," he said, his smile turning into a smirk.

She smiled. "Thank you."

"You think you can wear this around the house for me without anything else under it?" he asked hopefully.

"You stop sulking and I'll seriously consider it," she replied, grinning.

"But I'm cute when I sulk," he pouted.

Sophie laughed out loud and wound her arms around his neck, standing on her toes as she pulled him closer to her for a soft kiss. He wrapped his arms low around her back, kissing her as best he could with a swollen lip.

They both groaned in frustration when the doorbell rang. They reluctantly let each other out of their embrace.

"Go relax. I'll get it," she told him, kissing him once more on his nose.

As Sophie went to answer the door, she pushed down the rising feeling of guilt that had been consistently resurfacing within her ever since last night.

She still hadn't told Chase about going to Danny's apartment for poker.

And after what Chase had just said, she wasn't bringing it up anytime soon.

Sophie answered the door and smiled when she saw that House and Cuddy were at her doorstep. Cuddy was carrying a shopping bag from _The Little Chef Pastry Shop_.

"Come in," she said, backing up to allow both of them to enter her home.

Sophie and Cuddy kissed each other on the cheek. "Thanks so much for having us," Cuddy said.

"Why are you thanking her? It was Wilson who invited us," House remarked.

"I'm thanking her because this is _HER_ house, and she's our _HOST_," Cuddy told him in an extremely condescending and pedantic manner.

House turned his attention toward Sophie.

"Nice apron. Chase into domestic fantasies lately?" he asked.

Cuddy tugged on the collar of House's t- shirt, pulling him down towards her.

"Are you gonna behave?" she warned him lightly.

"Probably not," he replied.

Cuddy sighed in exasperation and gave Sophie the shopping bag she was holding.

"You didn't have to bring anything," Sophie told her.

"It's a fruit tart cake. Greg won't touch it with a ten foot pole, which means we'll actually get to eat dessert tonight," she quipped.

"Don't count on it. After you threw out all the junk food in the house, I might just have to resort to eating fruit," House stated.

"Jimmy told me he's bringing a Black Forest cake," Sophie reassured him.

"Thank _GOD_," House stated.

"I'm surprised you're here so early," Sophie commented as she led them through the foyer.

Cuddy leaned closer to Sophie. "He didn't want to miss the looks on your parents faces when Wilson tells them that he's getting married again," she admitted.

"That makes two of us," Sophie deadpanned.

Cuddy laughed. "Can I help you with anything?" she asked.

"No, but you can keep me company in the kitchen," she replied with a friendly smile.

As the three of them entered the living room, House immediately made a bee line for the couch.

As he did, Chase was making his way down the steps with the help of his cane, having changed out of his white polo shirt into a navy short- sleeved silk shirt with a subtle grey hibiscus pattern to match his khaki cargo shorts.

"I knew you were going to change," Sophie said in a teasing manner.

Chase stuck his tongue out at her and grinned in response as he finally got down to the first floor.

But Cuddy's smile fell when she saw Chase's face.

"What happened to you?!" she asked with great concern, as she crossed the room to him.

Chase chuckled with embarrassment, feeling a flush creep up his neck.

"I fell down the stairs last night," he mumbled off- handedly.

She placed his hand caringly on his shoulder. "Are you ok?" she asked, staring at his swollen lip.

"I'm fine," he said, dismissively, not exactly thrilled that the swelling was obvious enough for Cuddy to see it from a few feet away.

"Wow. You look like _crap_," House stated to him from the couch.

"Are we in the hospital?!" Sophie demanded of House in a sharp tone, her eyes blazing in anger.

Cuddy and Chase both turned towards Sophie, stunned at her question and sudden change in demeanor.

"… No," House said, a little surprised himself.

"Are we in your office or in the Clinic?" she asked, placing her hands on her hips and shifting her weight slightly.

"Did you know that you look just like Wilson when you do that?" House asked, deflecting her interrogation.

"Whether I like it or not, you're here as our _GUEST_ tonight, which means that you _DON'T_ insult Robert in our home," Sophie stated almost menacingly.

Cuddy and Chase were still in shock, their eyes riveted on House, waiting for his reaction.

House merely raised a curious eyebrow, keeping his gaze on her.

"…Ok," he finally said in an even tone.

Sophie let out a quiet breath that she didn't even know she was holding in. She then squeezed Chase's hand.

"You think we should heat up the grill? My parents, Wilson and Debbie'll be here soon," she reminded him.

Chase, still a bit thrown off at how she had so vehemently defended him against House, stammered for a moment.

"… S-sure," he finally said.

Sophie then turned around and headed for the kitchen, with Cuddy following her.

As Chase limped through the dining room and exited out the back sliding glass door to the deck, House kept his thoughts on Sophie, a smirk on his lips as his latest puzzle presented itself. 

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"I'm impressed," Cuddy said to Sophie once they arrived at the kitchen.

"Don't be," Sophie muttered, starting to feel embarrassed at how she lashed out at House.

"SINCE YOU MADE SUCH AN EFFORT TO POINT OUT THAT I'M A GUEST, HOW ABOUT OFFERING ME A BEER?" House shouted out from the living room.

Cuddy rolled her eyes at Sophie and headed for the refrigerator.

"This'll shut him up for a while," she assured Sophie as she took a bottle of Heineken out of the fridge door.

"I shouldn't have spoken to him like that," Sophie said regretfully, shaking her head.

"Maybe if _more_ people spoke to him like that, he wouldn't be such a jerk," Cuddy said in an effort to make her feel better.

Sophie couldn't help but laugh. "I doubt it," she replied with a sad, lopsided smile.

"You ok?" Cuddy asked, noticing her mixed expression.

For a moment, Sophie considered confessing to Cuddy that she had only lashed out at House because she was feeling so guilty about what she had done the night before.

But she dismissed the idea as quickly as it came to her.

"Yeah… I'm just a little nervous about my parents coming, that's all," she said with a shrug.

Cuddy smiled in understanding. "My parents _still_ haven't met House, and I'm knocked up with his kid," she said.

Sophie laughed out loud. "You wanna get Robbie a beer, too?" she asked her.

"Sure," she said, going back into the fridge and retrieving another beer for Chase along with a bottle opener from the silverware drawer. "I'll be right back."

But when Cuddy returned to the living room, House wasn't there anymore. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 

A few moments later, House opened the sliding glass door that led out to the deck. Chase had already started the grill and was brushing the grill plates clean.

"Nice shirt," House said, sliding the door closed behind him.

"Thanks," Chase replied as he continued to clean the grill.

He watched Chase's face as he focused on the task, noticing that Chase refused to look up at him.

"So what was _THAT_ about?" House asked in mock ignorance.

"_THAT_ was my fiancée refusing to take any of your _crap_ tonight," Chase replied.

Just then, Cuddy came out onto the deck with two beers in her hand. She handed one to House and left the other one on the side of the grill.

"No snacks?" House asked her.

Cuddy handed him the bottle opener and shot him a glare.

"You're pushing your luck, old man," she warned him.

Chase chuckled a bit as Cuddy returned back into the house, closing the door behind her.

House smiled as he honed in on how perfectly her white miniskirt framed her ass and how the ankle ties on her white and cork espadrilles lengthened her shapely, toned legs.

"Did you really fall down the stairs?" House asked, turning his attention back to Chase, the vision of Cuddy's legs and behind still on his mind as he popped the caps off of his and Chase's beer bottles.

"Yep. Got a bump on my head, too. We've got a CT scanner in the basement. Wanna see the films?" Chase shot back.

"Ooh, snarky. Which means that you're _defensive_… which means that you're _embarrassed_ about your little fall," House observed.

"Should I be proud of it?" Chase muttered. "I fell down a flight of stairs."

"You're not embarrassed about the fall itself. You're embarrassed about the _REASON_ you fell," House clarified, staring intently at Chase.

Chase looked up at House's penetrating gaze on him, once again amazed and annoyed at how well House could read a situation with only the slightest clues. He took a sip from the bottle that House had opened for him and swallowed.

"…I went out to dinner with Cameron last night. I came home late. I forgot to take my last pill, tried to make my way up the stairs and fell. Sorry it's not more interesting," Chase confessed with an edge to his voice.

House popped his eyebrows slightly, intrigued by this new tidbit of information.

"You went out to dinner with _Cameron_… you forgot to take your last pill… and you fell down the stairs…" House repeated.

"Yep," Chase replied.

A slow, knowing smile crept across House's face.

"You had good- bye sex with her, didn't you?" House asked.

Chase's eyes almost popped out of his head, his jaw gaping open.

"_NO!!!_" he exclaimed.

"But _SOMETHING_ happened," House pressed.

Suddenly feeling as if he was back in House's office after revealing to him, Cameron and Foreman that he had kissed Andie, their former nine year old Cancer patient, Chase looked down at the wooden slats of the deck in extreme discomfort.

"… I kissed her good- bye," Chase admitted.

"That must've been some kiss," House remarked.

Chase glanced to the side and over to one of his neighbor's deck, absentmindedly looking at the potted plants, refusing to comment.

"Does Sophie know about it?" House asked.

"Yes," Chase replied in a contrite voice.

"But she's not angry," House clarified.

"Not at all," Chase replied.

"And that _surprises_ you," House said.

"… Actually, yeah. I mean… Sophie knew that I wanted to say good- bye to her… but I was honestly shocked that she wasn't more upset about the whole thing."

"…What'd Sophie do last night when you went out with Cameron?" House asked, after a considerable and thoughtful pause.

"Stayed home," Chase said with a shrug. "She had reading to do."

House paused once more, putting his beer up to his lips.

"… You sure?" House asked him before taking a sip.

TBC…


	29. Chapter 29

**HI EVERYONE!  
**

**THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING, FOR ALL YOUR GREAT COMMENTS AND FOR BEING SO PATIENT. I WAS HAVING TROUBLE UPLOADING THIS CHAPTER.**

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**CHAPTER 29: Please read and comment.**

"…What'd Sophie do last night when you went out with Cameron?" House asked, after a considerable and thoughtful pause.

"Stayed home," Chase said with a shrug. "She had reading to do."

House paused once more, putting his beer up to his lips.

"… You sure?" House asked him before taking a sip.

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be sure?" he asked defensively, narrowing his eyes.

"It doesn't seem odd to you that she's not the least bit upset that you shared a passionate kiss with your ex and that she attacked me when I said that you look like crap?" House demanded.

Chase only paused for a second before answering.

"No," he stated flatly.

"How hard did you hit your head when you fell down the stairs?" House asked with a grimace.

Chase snorted in disgust and began to make his way back inside. But House grabbed his arm, stopping him before he could even get to the sliding door.

"This is the same girl that lost her cool on this deck because she was so jealous that you were worried about Cameron getting sick in Africa. You really don't think that she did something last night to get back at you?" House asked, his eyes boring into Chase's.

A curt laugh escaped Chase's lips. "If she did something to get at back at me, wouldn't she have flaunted in my face instead of keeping it a secret?" Chase countered.

"Not if she feels guilty about it," House replied.

"I'd know if she was hiding something from me," Chase stated.

"That's amazing, considering she's been able to make a living at lying to people since she was sixteen years old," House snarked.

"So your theory is that because she's a professional poker player, she's lying to me about something that she did last night," Chase retorted, folding his arms across his chest, cocking his head a bit.

"I'm saying that if she _WAS_ lying to you, you wouldn't be able to tell," House said.

Chase exhaled through his nose, feeling his frustration with House escalate, along with the various aches and pains all over his body from the fall.

"Sophie _loves_ me. She wouldn't lie to me," Chase said simply.

"Right. Because people who love each other _NEVER_ lie," House said, coldly.

As House continued to pierce Chase with his stare, the doorbell rang from inside the house. Chase immediately looked away from House and grabbed his cane, which was hanging off a nearby chair.

"Whoops. The folks," House quipped.

At that, Chase paused at the door.

"…Are you gonna bring this up during dinner and ruin the evening?" Chase asked softly.

"No," House said.

Chase raised his eyebrow suspiciously.

"I'm gonna be having _WAY_ too much fun torturing Wilson in front of his parents about his upcoming nuptials," House said, before following Chase back inside. 

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By the time Chase got to the door, Sophie had already answered it, hugging and kissing her parents hello.

Chase put a warm smile on his face upon reaching them, deciding to ignore the seeds of doubt that House had planted in his mind about Sophie.

"It's such a pleasure to finally meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Wilson," Chase said to Sophie's parents in a charming manner as he shook both their hands in greeting.

"Rob, how many times have we told you? It's Susan and Martin," Sophie's mother scolded him playfully.

Chase smiled at them. Petite and lovely with dark brown shoulder length hair, Susan Wilson could have easily been mistaken as Sophie's older sister instead of her mother. While she bore a striking resemblance to her daughter, right down to her deep brown eyes, Sophie's father, Martin, looked like a slightly older version of Wilson.

"I know. I'm just old fashioned that way," Chase said with a smile.

"Well we're not, so you better get used to it," Susan said, returning his smile with a sweet one of her own.

Chase laughed, suddenly remembering how he must have looked to the two of them with his swollen lip.

"You're probably wondering why I look like I went three rounds with Muhammad Ali," Chase joked in self- deprecation.

"Sophie told us this morning about your fall last night. How're you feeling?" Martin asked with concern.

"A little sore, but I'm ok," Chase reassured them, impulsively giving Sophie's left hand a squeeze as he stood next to her.

Sophie squeezed his hand back, knowing that he was grateful to her that she had given her parents the heads up about his fall so he wouldn't be embarrassed.

She then noticed that her mother was carrying a shopping bag from Crate & Barrel.

"What's that?" Sophie asked.

"A housewarming present," Susan replied cheerfully, handing the bag to both of them.

"Oh, mom, you didn't have to buy us anything," Sophie said as she took the shopping bag from her mother.

"Yes we did. Our daughter and her boyfriend just bought a new house together," Martin said.

Chase and Sophie looked at each other shyly.

"… Actually… not boyfriend," Sophie began.

Chase paused for a moment as slightly bewildered glances formed on Susan and Martin's faces. He squeezed her left hand once again, preparing to tell them their secret.

"I'm sorry I never asked your permission… but I proposed to your daughter last weekend…" Chase began.

He then looked at Sophie, who was positively glowing.

"And she said 'yes,'" Chase said softly with a loving expression.

Susan and Martin looked at each other in shock and then back at Sophie and Chase.

"… You're _ENGAGED_?!" Susan exclaimed.

Sophie nodded as she gently took her hand out of Chase's and showed her parents the engagement ring that Chase had bought her in Antigua the weekend before, her smile widening.

"Oh my goodness…" Susan said, barely above a whisper.

She then grabbed her daughter and hugged her tight, tears welling up in her eyes. Sophie laughed out loud as she hugged her back. Martin grinned broadly as he congratulated Chase and pulled him in for a firm hug.

Sophie glanced over at her father and Chase, feeling her own emotions well up inside her. She knew how much Chase losing his own parents had affected him, and she wasn't sure how he'd react to such an outpouring of affection from her parents.

But as she saw Chase's broad grin over her mother's shoulder as he and her father clasped each other on the back, she knew that he'd have no problem accepting them as his new family.

Finally letting go of her daughter, Susan turned to Chase, the tears of joy now rolling down her cheeks.

"You're going to be my son- in- law," she whispered.

"That's right," Chase said, still smiling.

She then placed her hands on one of Chase's cheeks and planted a loud kiss on the other one before pulling him into a hug. Chase laughed as she did so.

Cuddy stood in the doorway of Chase and Sophie's kitchen, a sweet smile on her face as she watched Martin hug his daughter while Susan hugged her future son- in- law. House, who had finally come back in from the deck with his empty beer bottle in his hand, ambled up to Cuddy.

"I guess little orphan Aussie has a new family," House said.

Cuddy shot House a dirty look, refusing to let his remark put a damper on how happy she felt for Chase and Sophie at that moment.

"I can't _WAIT_ to see how they're going to react to meeting their fourth ex- daughter in law," House added. 

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After Sophie and Chase had taken Susan and Martin on a tour of their new home, the six of them retreated back to the deck behind the house.

Susan and Martin had made themselves comfortable in two of the cushioned chaise lounges, while Chase poured them some champagne that he had been chilling in the fridge for the occasion.

House had wasted no time in snagging the third chaise lounge, stretching his legs out in front of him, while Cuddy sat at the glass topped table with Sophie, sipping on non- alcoholic sparkling cider that Chase had purchased just for her.

"This is some view," Martin remarked, jutting his chin out to the large, scenic pond that was several feet away from their property. The elegant fountain in the middle of the water was lit with aquamarine light, creating a tranquil atmosphere.

"Thank you, sir," Chase replied, topping off Martin's champagne glass.

"Three bedrooms, huh?" Susan commented with a coy grin.

"Mom, don't start," Sophie stated with an eyeroll.

"What? I'm just making an observation," Susan said innocently.

"Yeah, right," Sophie muttered, taking a swig from her own champagne glass.

"Yeah, Sophie wasn't exactly thrilled about having three bedrooms at first," Chase admitted, pouring champagne into his own glass.

Susan raised her eyebrow at her daughter, almost knowingly. Sophie returned her look with a pointed stare of her own, indicating for her to keep quiet.

Susan pressed her lips together and then took a sip of her champagne, saying nothing.

Martin, having no idea what had just transpired between his wife and his daughter, took a sip of his drink as well.

"I mean, I don't blame her. We're not even married yet, so it's kind of early to be thinking about that sort of stuff," Chase quickly added.

"Why is that?" Martin asked.

At this, Chase turned his head sharply towards his future father-in- law, completely shocked.

"…You want me to be pregnant before I'm married? I just got engaged and I'm not even out of med school yet," Sophie pointed out with a little bit of a nervous laugh.

"You think we're gonna live forever? And at the rate your brother's going, he'll be on his eighth wife before we get a grandchild," Martin commented.

Seizing the opportunity to take the heat off herself, Sophie widened her eyes a bit before dramatically darting her eyes away from them, as if she was hiding something from them.

"What?" Susan asked with trepidation at her daughter's expression.

Sophie shrugged. "Nothing," she said, pretending to be nonchalant.

"He's getting married again, isn't he?" Susan said wearily, her entire body slumping.

House smirked at Susan's reaction.

Just then, the doorbell rang again from inside the house. Sophie immediately got up from the table and headed over to the sliding glass door.

"He wanted to surprise you. So don't let on," Sophie warned them.

"And _DON'T_ look disappointed," she added before going inside.

Both Susan and Martin inhaled deeply as they prepared themselves to meet yet another one of Wilson's fiancées. House leaned forward in his chaise towards both of them.

"Bet you've both gotten real good at that over the years," House said to them. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

A few moments later, Sophie returned to the deck with Wilson and Debbie, who were holding hands.

Susan and Martin immediately stood up, plastering smiles on their faces.

"Debbie, I'd like you to meet Susan and Martin, my parents…" Wilson began cordially.

"Mom, dad, this is Debbie Hamilton," he continued, pausing for a moment.

"… My fiancée," he finished.

Before Susan and Martin could say anything in response, Debbie immediately held her hand out, first shaking Susan's hand and then Martin's.

"It's so nice to finally meet you both," she said sincerely.

Both of Wilson's parents kept the smiles on their faces, shaking her hand in turn.

As an awkward silence passed over the entire deck, House drained his champagne glass and got up off his chaise to pour himself another one, noting to himself that Debbie didn't receive the same warm welcome into the family that Chase did.

"I'll… go get dinner started," Sophie offered, attempting to ease the tension.

"I'll help you," Chase said quickly, eager to follow her back into their house to escape.

Suddenly, Wilson furrowed his brow when he noticed Chase's swollen lip.

"What happened to you?" Wilson asked.

"He fell. Where's the cake?" House said. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

A while later, the steaks were simmering on the grill while everyone was enjoying the fresh vegetables, crackers and dip that Sophie had prepared. The Wilson family, Debbie and Chase were sitting at the glass table while Cuddy had moved over to one of the chaises next to House.

The awkwardness still hung in the air as Susan and Martin kept their smiles on their faces, the both of them wondering how long their son would stay married to the girl sitting next to him before the divorce proceedings started.

Cuddy was resting a paper plate piled high with the veggies, crackers and dip on her lap, savoring each bite.

"You'd better watch it with that dip," House snarked to Cuddy.

"You'd better watch it with that mouth," Cuddy shot back as she ate another cracker with dip on it.

Chase laughed out loud at that from his position at the table, causing House to glare at him.

"It was _FUNNY_," Chase stated.

"So, Debbie. Have you been working at Princeton Plainsboro long?" Martin asked her.

"About six years. I was at Deloitte & Touche before that," she replied.

"You left the best accounting firm in the country to work in a hospital?" Susan asked in surprise.

"I actually felt a little lost in such a big firm. Just another junior CPA fresh out of school, you know? Princeton Plainsboro is more like a family," Debbie replied.

"And if I had stayed at Deloitte, I never would have met James," she added, taking Wilson's hand in hers at the table, smiling at him.

Wilson smiled back and kissed her cheek.

"Shut up," Cuddy suddenly said to House.

"I didn't _SAY_ anything," House stated in annoyance.

"I could hear you thinking," she replied.

"Well… it looks like we're going to have two weddings in our family," Martin said, attempting to ease the tension again. "Did you all set dates?"

At this, Chase, Sophie, Wilson and Debbie looked at each other awkwardly.

"…Yeah..." Sophie began trailing off.

"Ours is October 15 and theirs is October 22. We picked Antigua, they picked the Caymans," Chase explained.

Another uncomfortable silence enveloped the table.

House was almost bursting with glee at the tension.

"Honey, people won't travel to the Caribbean two weekends in a row. Especially now. The economy's terrible," Susan said as gently as she could.

"We didn't _PLAN_ it. It just… worked out that way," Wilson muttered.

Another silence washed over them until Debbie finally decided that it was time to speak up.

"… Maybe… one of us should change the date…" Debbie suggested.

Sophie turned towards Debbie with a raised eyebrow, shocked that she'd have the nerve to bring that up after Wilson made Debbie apologize to her after demanding that she change her wedding date just last week.

"Why don't you just have both weddings the same weekend in the same location?" Cuddy suggested from the chaise, sensing the tension between the two of them.

All six of them at the table turned around to face Cuddy.

Debbie's smirk immediately disappeared.

And Wilson noticed.

"You _CAN'T_ be serious," Wilson stated to Cuddy, thinking that Debbie wasn't too happy at the moment.

"I'm not saying a double wedding," Cuddy said, as if the notion was ludicrous.

"I'm saying that one wedding could be Saturday night and the other could be the following Sunday afternoon. Since you're probably inviting most of the same people, you could make an entire weekend out of it," Cuddy explained, gesturing with her hands as she spoke.

"…It would make things easier…" Martin admitted, turning down his lower lip.

"But one of us would still have to change our date _AND_ the location," Wilson reminded them.

"I think Wilson and Debbie should be the one to change their date," House piped up.

Cuddy eyebrows popped up, shocked at first that House would even have any interest in this conversation.

But Wilson glared at House menacingly, knowing all too well that his friend was just trying to stir the pot.

"Wait a minute. We haven't even decided if we're actually doing this," Wilson stated firmly.

"You have something against getting married to this beautiful lady a week earlier than you were supposed to?" House asked him pointedly.

"… Of course not. It's just… we've already sent in our deposit…" Wilson began, looking back and forth nervously between Debbie and House as he spoke.

"I'm sure you can get it back. People must cancel weddings just as often as they get divorced, right?" House asked with a shrug.

Wilson's eyes almost popped out of his head, his jaw slacked open at House's insensitive remark.

Cuddy immediately smacked his shoulder with the back of her hand as she held onto her plate of hors d'ouvers protectively so they wouldn't fall off her lap.

"…Maybe House is right," Debbie suddenly said.

At this, everyone turned to Debbie in shock.

"_WHAT_?!" Wilson blurted out.

"If we change our date, we can still have a Caribbean beach front wedding, and more people will come," Debbie told him.

Wilson couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"You sure you're ok with this?" he asked her, not really wanting to push his luck.

Debbie nodded.

"Yeah, because it means that I get to be the fourth Mrs. Wilson that much sooner," she replied with a wry, yet soft smile.

She then leaned forward kissed his lips once and pulled him in for a hug. Wilson wrapped his arms around her and buried his face into her soft, blond hair.

Chase and Martin chuckled a bit, the tension at the table starting to fade. Sophie smiled at her brother's happiness. Even Susan began to relax, thinking that maybe her son might just be in it for the long haul this time.

"I can't believe it," Cuddy said, dumbfounded.

"What? That they actually went with your suggestion?" House asked.

"No, that your evil plot to ruin the evening was thwarted," Cuddy snarked.

"The night is young," he said, shooting Chase a meaningful glance.

Chase kept his eyes on House for only a moment before getting up to check on the grill.

TBC…


	30. Chapter 30

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**CHAPTER 30: Please read and comment.  **

House, Cuddy, Wilson, Debbie, Chase, Sophie and the Wilsons were still eating dinner on Chase and Sophie's deck when Chase realized that House hadn't said anything inappropriate for over a half hour.

Which meant that House could strike without warning at any moment.

"These roasted potatoes are _AMAZING_," Cuddy said as she dished the last of the oven roasted potatoes that Sophie had prepared onto her plate.

"So I gathered, judging by your third helping," House commented.

"Do you want double Clinic duty for the rest of your _LIFE_?" Cuddy demanded, shooting him an irritated glance.

"You realize that after your sanctimonious purging of our kitchen cabinets, you'd be a hypocrite if you ate those," House pointed out.

"I'm pregnant. I can be a hypocrite if I want," Cuddy declared.

"I remember when you were pregnant with Jimmy, you couldn't even look at food for almost your whole first trimester," Martin commented to Susan as he took a forkful of steak.

"Yeah, that was _LOADS_ of fun," Susan drawled in sarcasm.

Chase laughed a bit at that, causing Sophie to dart her eyes in his direction as she took another sip of her wine.

"If you want the recipe for the potatoes, they're easy. Just a package of onion soup mix and a little vegetable oil," Sophie said, attempting to steer the subject away from Cuddy's pregnancy.

Which House noticed with great interest.

"Even _YOU_ could do that," Cuddy snarked to House.

"Don't bet on it," House stated, shifting his focus back to Cuddy as he cut another piece of steak for himself.

"You know it wouldn't be so bad if you learned how to cook a few things," Cuddy said.

"Yes it would," House said without missing a beat.

"There might be times when I'll be working later than you and you'll have to cook dinner for our child," Cuddy reminded him.

"I _DO_ know how to open a jar of baby food," House muttered.

"Eventually, they stop eating baby food," Cuddy said with a condescending smile.

House paused for a moment as she watched Cuddy devour her third helping of potatoes.

He shrugged. "Don't know why. Seems like a great time saver. Goes out the same way it goes in."

At this, everyone at the table looked up from their plates with a raised eyebrow.

Except for Cuddy, who felt an overwhelming wave of nausea wash over her. She groaned and pushed her plate across the table away from her.

"Thanks," Cuddy mumbled in disgust.

Seizing the opportunity, House immediately reached across the table and pulled her plate towards him. He quickly dished the potatoes from Cuddy's plate onto his and started eating them voraciously.

"'Bout time. Monopolies are illegal, ya' know," he said.

Cuddy rolled her eyes and took a sip of her sparkling cider in attempts to ease her stomach.

"You want me to get you some ginger ale?" Chase offered.

Cuddy nodded. "Yes, please," she said.

As Wilson, Martin and Debbie got involved in their own conversation at the table, Chase smiled, excused himself from the table and went back inside the house. Once he left, Susan leaned over to her daughter.

"He's a doll," Susan told her in a low voice with a smile.

Sophie nodded happily. "He was so nervous about meeting you and dad," she confessed.

"Really? He didn't seem to be nervous," Susan commented in slight surprise.

"Because of his leg," Sophie whispered.

Susan furrowed her brow. "But we knew about his leg," she said.

"He didn't want you to see him any differently because of it," Sophie explained, still whispering.

"Why would we?" Susan asked.

"Because he's a cripple," House interjected flatly, having heard their entire conversation.

Both Susan and Sophie turned their heads sharply at House. Wilson, Debbie and Martin stopped their own conversation at House's words.

Cuddy was just staring at him, with her eyes almost popping out of their sockets, so shocked that she couldn't say anything.

"He's _NOT_ a cripple," Sophie stated vehemently.

"Ok. 'Differently Abled,'" House said dramatically with an eyeroll. "God, being P.C. is just so five years ago."

"He fell… and needed surgery," she said slowly and evenly, trying to keep her voice from quivering and her rising anger under control.

"Leaving him crippled," House repeated, meeting Sophie's blazing eyes across the table, his own cerulean eyes as calm as a sea after a storm.

"House. _STOP_ it," Wilson warned.

Susan placed her hand on her daughter's shoulder in an attempt to quell the rage rising within her.

"You know, it's not _NICE_ to lie to the handicapped," House said to Sophie in a leading tone, shooting her a meaningful glance.

At this, Sophie froze. She kept her facial expression neutral as her insides twisted in fear.

Everyone else at the table wore extremely bewildered looks on their faces, having no idea what House was talking about.

"Excuse me. I need to use the little boys room," House said, getting up from the table.

"What was that about?" Wilson asked Cuddy.

"I have no idea," she admitted.

But Sophie had a sickening feeling that she knew exactly what House was referring to.

"I'm sorry. I'll never let him off his leash again," Cuddy said to Sophie, trying to ease the tension at the table.

Sophie forced herself to laugh and shook her head dismissively, trying to pretend that House's comments hadn't affected her in any way.

She remained at the table and continued to eat, knowing that if she went inside after House, that it would look too suspicious.

She only hoped that House really did have to pee and wasn't talking to Chase. 

----------------------------------------------------------------- 

Chase was in the kitchen, pouring some ginger ale into a tall glass with ice for Cuddy when House entered the kitchen.

"Where's Sophie's purse?" House asked him, standing in the middle of Chase's kitchen, leaning on his cane.

"Sophie needs her purse?" Chase asked in confusion as he continued to pour the ginger ale.

"No, _I_ need her purse. Where is it?" he repeated impatiently.

Chase stared at him for a brief moment before putting the bottle of ginger ale down on the kitchen counter. He then turned around to face House, squared off his shoulders and folded his arms across his chest.

"What do you need her purse for?" Chase demanded softly.

"Ooh, it's 'Cripple Face- Off,'" House snarked. "Too bad it's not a cage match. Guarantee you at least three of the ladies out on your deck would love to see us rip each other's shirts off."

"Why do you need her purse?" Chase repeated, refusing to back down or to acknowledge his comment.

"Aren't you curious which three ladies out there wanna see you shirtless?" House asked.

Chase inhaled through his nose, keeping his eyes locked on House and maintaining his defensive posture.

"If Sophie _DID_ go out last night and lied about it, then the evidence is probably in her purse," House explained in annoyance, gesturing with his free hand to clarify his point.

"You don't care about me. You just need to know if she's lying," Chase stated angrily.

"And you _DON'T_?" House demanded.

Chase paused thoughtfully for a moment, his aquamarine eyes softening just a bit.

"No," he finally said.

House narrowed his eyes and smirked.

"Either you really trust her, or you _DON'T_ trust her and you're trying to spare yourself the big hurt," House stated.

"You kept Cate a secret from Cuddy because you didn't want _HER_ to get hurt," Chase reminded him.

"Which was _IDIOTIC_!" House exclaimed.

"So then I'm an idiot. So what?!" Chase challenged.

House kept his curious gaze on him, waiting for Chase to explain himself. Unable to bear House's scrutiny any longer, Chase finally looked away from him, exhaling as he looked down at the floor.

"Sophie loves me," Chase said softly.

House raised his eyebrows ever so slightly.

"And that's a _BAD_ thing?" he asked.

"She loves me _UNCONDITIONALLY_," Chase clarified, still looking down at the floor.

"Again. Not following you," House said.

"I never intended on Sophie finding out that I kissed Cameron. I planned on keeping it a secret from her forever," Chase said, finally meeting House's eyes.

"But she did… and she understood…" Chase continued.

"…Which means Sophie's entitled to keep a few secrets from me," Chase finally finished.

"I played poker at Danny's last night," Sophie blurted out.

Both men turned their heads in unison in the direction of Sophie's voice, having no idea that she had been standing in the doorway of the kitchen for the duration of their entire conversation.

Chase's eyes widened in shock at her words.

The corners of House's lips turned up ever so slightly as he basked silently in triumph.

"…Y-you told me that you stayed home," Chase stammered.

"I know…" Sophie began, her lips trembling as she slowly entered the kitchen, desperately hoping that Chase wouldn't break off their engagement at what she was about to tell him.

"Danny overheard us fighting in the Clinic yesterday about you going to dinner with Cameron, so he invited me to come to his place for cards. I was angry at you, so I went. I was at his place when you called," she babbled.

"And then after we hung up, I realized that I didn't want to be there anymore… or ever again… so I took my winnings and called it a night," she continued, feeling more and more ashamed as she confessed, her voice quivering as she spoke.

Chase didn't say anything.

He merely watched her, his chest rising and falling with each breath.

"That's not the whole story," House said.

Sophie glanced quickly at House and then focused back on Chase, who hadn't taken his eyes off her.

"…No, it's not," she said in a small voice.

"…He walked me out to my car… and he… tried to kiss me," she said, in a barely audible voice, a flush of humiliation creeping up her face, her eyes darting to the floor.

Chase limped a few steps towards her and touched her chin gently to make her look into his eyes.

"… Did you kiss him back?" Chase asked, his voice as gentle as his touch.

Sophie shook her head vehemently. "No. I pushed him away. I told him I wasn't interested in him and then I got in my car and drove home."

"I didn't go there for him. I went for the cards and to piss you off—" Sophie insisted.

"I know," Chase said, gazing into her deep brown eyes.

He then smiled ever so slightly, the corners of his eyes crinkling up in amusement as he did so.

"How much did you win?" he asked.

"…T-two grand," she managed to say, slightly thrown off at his question.

Chase turned down his lower lip.

"Not bad," he said with a shrug, his smile broadening.

"You're… you're not angry at me?" she asked, dumbfounded, as if she was waking from a dream.

"Did you want me to be?" he asked her in amusement.

Sophie couldn't help but laugh.

"No," she said, grinning at him.

Chase then gathered her into his arms and held her close, nuzzling his face into the softness of her hair. She wound her arms around his back, breathing a deep sigh of relief, holding him tightly.

"I'm so sorry," Sophie whispered.

"Me too," Chase replied, tightening his embrace.

"Well, this wasn't nearly as dramatic as I'd hoped," House said flatly.

"Sorry to disappoint you," Chase said sarcastically over Sophie's shoulder, not bothering to look at him.

As they held each other, House grabbed the bakery box that Wilson had brought off the kitchen counter and headed for their front door.

"Where are you going?" Chase asked him.

"I'm stashing this cake in the trunk of my car. I'll take it out after Cuddy falls asleep," he replied.

Chase grunted out a laugh and pulled Sophie closer to him, brushing his lips against hers.

Sophie felt her eyes flutter closed and her entire body succumb to Chase's kiss, that wonderful, indescribable sensation overwhelming her every time his lips met hers.

"Cuddy's probably wondering… where her ginger ale is…" Sophie breathed against his lips.

"Probably…" Chase replied just as breathlessly, deepening their kiss. 

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Upon reaching his car, House popped open the trunk and stashed the bakery box that Wilson had brought to Chase and Sophie's home under an old blanket that he always kept there.

He stood there, the trunk of his car still open, replaying the events of the evening in his mind.

Sophie had expertly steered the conversation away from Cuddy's pregnancy during dinner. He had also noticed a meaningful exchange of glances between Sophie and her mother earlier in the evening when they were talking about the possibility of Sophie giving her parents grandchildren.

There was no doubt in House's mind that Sophie was hiding something else.

Something a lot more significant than sneaking out to a poker game.

Something that would most likely rock Chase's world if he found out about it.

As he closed the trunk of his car and locked it, he decided then and there that he was finally going to solve the puzzle of Sophie Wilson, using whatever means he had at his disposal to do so.

"_I WONDER WHAT CATE WOULD MAKE OF ALL THIS?_" House thought to himself as he limped back up the driveway.

TBC…


	31. Chapter 31

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**CHAPTER 31: Please read and comment.**

Later that night, House and Cuddy were in their bed. While House was leafing through the latest edition of "Petersens 4Wheel & Off Road" magazine, Cuddy was sitting on top of their comforter next to him, applying moisturizer to her elbows.

As she began to apply the lotion to her thighs and calves, House looked up at her from his magazine with interest. He gave her a lingering once over, his cock twitching in his pants at how sexy she looked in his black Harley Davidson graphic t- shirt and a white pair of lace panties.

"Need some help exfoliating?" House offered.

"I'm not exfoliating, I'm moisturizing. And if I wanted your help, I would've asked for it," Cuddy replied in a clipped tone.

"Ooh, feisty. Either you're horny or pissed off," House stated.

When she didn't answer him and continued to moisturize her legs, he tossed the magazine onto the bed and rolled over onto his elbow to face her.

"Personally, I wouldn't mind a little of both," he added.

"Why do you have to act like such an asshole every chance you get?" Cuddy demanded, turning her head sharply towards him.

House raised his eyebrow, quite surprised by her outburst.

"… Ok, usually you call me a 'jerk,' so I'm guessing you really are pissed," House commented.

"You insulted Chase all night, you've got some kind of grudge against Sophie for _GOD_ knows what, you kept reminding me what a fat pig I am _AND_ you stole the cake that Wilson brought and stashed it in the trunk of your car!" Cuddy exclaimed.

House blinked. "You knew about the cake?" he asked.

"Why do I even bother?" she muttered as she began to get out of their bed in a huff.

But before she could, House grabbed her wrist, stopping her.

"Wait a minute," he said.

Knowing that House had no intention of letting go of her, she exhaled deeply and reluctantly sank back onto the bed. She leaned back heavily against the headboard and slumped her shoulders in defeat.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I told you what's wrong," she mumbled, staring down at her protruding belly that was covered by House's t- shirt.

"You mentioned four things in that speech. I'm guessing that only one of them is really bothering you," House said.

Cuddy kept her eyes downcast, saying nothing.

"Ok… first of all, me insulting Chase is nothing new, and I actually think he enjoys it, so let's rule that out. Secondly, I have nothing against Sophie. In fact, I…" he said, trailing off.

Cuddy looked up at him with an arched eyebrow, waiting for House to admit that he actually liked her.

"… let's just say that she's a _LOT_ less annoying than her older brother," House said.

Cuddy snorted and rolled her eyes, but still didn't comment.

"And you didn't care that I stole the cake… so the only thing that's left is your erroneous statement that I called you a fat pig," House finished.

"I hate how logical you are," she mumbled.

House smirked. "No, you just hate that I'm right," he said.

He kept his gaze on her, patiently waiting for her to crack. Finally, she clicked her tongue and closed her eyes, knowing that he wasn't going to leave her alone unless she told him the truth.

"… Sophie… asked me to be in her wedding party," she confessed miserably.

"…So?" House asked with a furrowed brow.

"So, right now, it's the end of June, which means in fourteen weeks, I have to walk down the aisle pregnant!" she replied impatiently.

"... So?" he repeated with the same confused look.

"So, when I'm not nauseous, I'm _RAVENOUS_! I've already gained six pounds. At this rate, I'm going to put on so much weight by both weddings—" she prattled on, her arms gesticulating wildly as she spoke.

"Stop it," House stated, cutting her off.

Cuddy exhaled deeply, her entire body sinking into the bed in defeat. She then rolled away from House onto her side so House couldn't see the miserable frown on her face.

House inched up closer to her, pressing the front of his body against her back and wrapped his arm over and around her waist, being careful not to put too much weight on her belly.

"You're not starving yourself for the next fourteen weeks, so don't even consider it," House said softly against her ear.

She said nothing, blinking back tears that had suddenly pooled in her eyes.

"You were also diagnosed with iron deficiency anemia before you were pregnant, so you _NEED_ to replace any nutrients you lose when you vomit," he added.

"Why couldn't you say any of this at Chase's house?" she pouted.

"Like you said. I'm an asshole," he replied.

She let out a tired laugh at that.

He slipped his hand beneath her t- shirt and caressed her ever so slightly swollen belly. She closed her eyes, feeling herself getting lost in his gentle, soothing touch.

But before she could relax, she knew that she had to ask him what had been eating away at her for quite some time. She suppressed the rising anxiety within her as she prepared herself.

"Why did you really go to Cate?" she asked softly, still facing away from him.

House stopped his soft caress in the middle of her belly.

"I told you why," he replied.

"You could have gone to any psychiatrist in the hospital, or even someone in private practice. But you went to _HER_," Cuddy stated.

She then turned back to face him, her sad, soft blue- grey eyes locking on his bright blue ones.

"Why?" she repeated, her voice soft, yet insistent.

House inhaled slowly through his nose and let out the breath, knowing that what he was about to confess was going to hurt.

But he didn't see any other way.

"… When she was my patient… I felt a connection with her," he admitted gruffly.

Cuddy kept her gaze on him as the jealousy at his admission spread throughout her chest.

"It wasn't love or even lust…" he continued.

"Just… something I couldn't describe," he added.

She nodded slowly, keeping her lips tight, having an uneasy feeling that whatever else he had to say was going to get worse.

"When you told me you were pregnant… it freaked me out," House admitted.

Cuddy felt her breath catch in her throat, completely caught off guard by his admission.

"It wasn't unexpected. We were trying—" she began.

"I know that," he interrupted.

"But I didn't actually think it was going to happen," he said softly.

Her jealousy for Cate quickly faded, as the ache in her heart spread throughout her chest.

"… You didn't want me to get pregnant?" she said, barely above a whisper.

"That's not what I'm saying," he said.

There was a heavy silence between them as House became increasingly frustrated with his inability to express himself.

But Cuddy remained silent.

"You're always expected the best of me as a doctor. To come up with the answer to save my patient," he said, a bit harsher than he had intended.

He then paused again, his demeanor softening.

"But as the man in your life… you hardly expected anything from me… and it was working for both of us…" he said tentatively.

"Until I got pregnant," she finished for him, finally understanding how he felt.

"Now… you're going to expect the best of me… and I don't know if I'm going to be able to deliver," he said, his voice gruff once again.

"Of course you will—" she began reassuringly.

"And THAT'S exactly why I went to Cate," he interrupted flatly.

Cuddy raised her eyebrows. "You don't want me to tell you that you're going to be a good father?" she asked, in complete bewilderment.

"You don't have any idea if I'm going to be a good father. Chances are, I'm going to be a _LOUSY_ father," he replied.

"Why? Because your dad was a lousy father?" she asked.

"That… and other reasons…" he said, refusing to elaborate.

"The difference is, that Cate won't fill me with platitudes that I'll rise to the occasion once the baby comes and I'll just know what to do instinctively because it's my kid," he began.

"She'll tell me the _TRUTH_. Because she doesn't love me," he finished.

"So your theory is that the more you love someone, the more you'll lie to them," she said.

"Haven't been proven wrong yet," he replied.

Cuddy propped herself up on her elbow on the bed and started intently into the beautiful eyes that stole her heart so many years ago.

"…And you think that the truth is that you're going to fail as a parent?" she asked him, her stare almost daring him to look away from her.

He kept his gaze locked on her, refusing to look away from her challenging stare, knowing that she understood that his silence and the expression in his eyes was an affirmative answer to her question.

"You're _NOT_ going to fail," she stated firmly.

"And how do you know that?" he asked.

She then reached up and caressed his cheek, his scruff tickling her palm.

"Because I won't _LET_ you," she replied.

Her simple gesture and touch moved him so much that he actually shuddered. Feeling overwhelmed with emotion, he leaned forward and captured her lips in a tender, lingering kiss, his lips and tongue exploring hers with yearning.

As they broke off their kiss to come up for air, they pressed their foreheads together, the both of them closing their eyes, just reveling in the quiet passion between them.

"Are you really _THAT_ upset about the weight gain?" he asked, opening his eyes.

She shrugged, her eyes still closed, finding herself suddenly unable to look at him.

"…You've always looked at me a certain way… and I _ALWAYS_ want you to look at me that way," she whispered.

"…C'mon," he said after a considerable pause, sitting up a bit and taking her hand in his.

"… Where are we going?" she asked, confused.

"Just c'mere," he told her, pulling her off the bed.

Holding her hand, he led her to the full- length mirror at the other end of their bedroom. Placing his hands on her shoulders, he gently turned her so she was facing the mirror and positioned himself behind her.

He then found the hem of his t- shirt that she was wearing and swiftly pulled it over her head. Now clad only in her white lace panties, she gasped and covered her breasts as a reflex.

"Put your hands down," he whispered into her ear.

She kept her hands on her breasts for another moment before complying. But once her hands were at her sides, she looked away from her almost naked reflection with a nervous laugh.

House touched her chin and gently turned her head so she'd look back at herself.

He then wrapped his arms around her, below the curve of her pregnant belly and gazed at her in the mirror.

He didn't move to touch her more than ample breasts or to squeeze her ass.

And he didn't say anything.

He just kept his hands on the lower part of her belly as his quiet gaze swept over her reflection, drinking in every inch of her beautiful body.

Cuddy felt her nipples pucker and an intense, soft tingle between her legs as his gaze lingered over every inch of her.

"Why are you doing this?" she whispered, looking at herself through the mirror.

"Because I want you to see what I've always seen," he said, completely mesmerized at the reflection of the woman in his arms.

"…What do you see?" she finally asked him in a small voice.

House smiled just a bit and caressed her belly, suddenly finding it a lot less difficult to express what had been in his heart that he had kept locked away for so many years.

"The woman that I always hoped I'd grow old with," he confessed.

She smiled with closed lips, her heart filling with love at his admonition.

"A beautiful, sexy, driven, confident…_MAJOR_ pain in my ass," he added.

She laughed out loud and placed her own hands on top of his, which was still on her belly.

"Just so you know, I'll _ALWAYS_ be a pain in your ass," she assured him.

"I know," he said, smiling at her through the mirror. 

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At around the same time, Wilson and Debbie were getting ready for bed in Wilson's apartment.

Debbie was wearing a lavender camisole and matching panties and was reading through a copy of Brides magazine when Wilson came back from the bathroom after brushing his teeth, clad in a McGill t- shirt and his boxers.

"Well, House was in rare form tonight," he said as he sat down on the bed next to her while reaching for the remote on the night- stand.

"He wasn't any different than usual," Debbie replied with a shrug, not taking her eyes off the magazine.

Wilson turned on the TV and started scrolling through the movie channels as Debbie continued to read her magazine in silence.

"I can't believe he stole my cake," Wilson said, finally settling on the movie "A Painted House" on Showtime.

"You're kidding me, right?" she asked flatly.

Wilson laughed slightly at that, leaned over to her and gave her a soft kiss on her cheek.

"I'm sorry it took so long for me to introduce you to my parents," Wilson told her sweetly.

Debbie nodded, keeping her eyes on her magazine, saying nothing.

Wilson raised his eyebrow a bit at her lack of a response, but decided not to press her.

"So what time are you, Sophie, Cuddy and my mom going to the bridal store tomorrow?" Wilson asked, changing the subject.

"Around ten," Debbie replied casually.

"It was nice that Sophie made you her maid of honor," Wilson commented.

"Did you think she wouldn't? She's MY maid of honor, remember?" Debbie asked in a clipped tone.

"Still… it was nice of her," Wilson said.

"Yep," Debbie said, popping the "_p_" at the end of the word in an exaggerated manner.

Wilson sighed, picked up the remote and turned off the TV.

"You're angry about the wedding," Wilson said, turning in their bed to face her.

"Gee, Sherlock. Did you figure that all out by yourself, or did you need to do a differential on House's whiteboard?" she snarked.

"If you're angry about the wedding, then why did you say you were ok with it?" Wilson demanded.

"What was I supposed to say? That it's an awful idea and that it's going to take away the significance of our special day if we have to share the weekend with your sister and Chase so I look like a complete bitch to your parents?" Debbie shot back.

"You wouldn't have looked like a bitch," he assured her.

"No, just a spoiled brat," she retorted. "Did you see how hostile your parents were to me tonight and how sweet they were to Chase?"

"They weren't hostile to you!" Wilson argued.

"Your mom said I was stupid for leaving a Big 6 firm to work at a hospital," she pointed out.

"She never said you were stupid. She was just making conversation," Wilson said in defense of his mother. "And their behavior tonight had nothing to do with you."

"Of _COURSE_ it does! I'm _MARRYING_ you, you idiot!" Debbie exclaimed.

Wilson exhaled in exasperation.

"And she thinks just like everyone else does. That we'll be divorced before the ink on our marriage license is dry," Debbie added miserably.

"This is exactly why I didn't want to introduce you to them. I don't care what they think!" Wilson stated insistently.

"But I _DO_!" she yelled. "I've never had in- laws before. You've had three sets!"

"…Most people hate their in- laws," Wilson muttered, having no idea what else to say.

"But that doesn't mean I have to," she told him.

"Then let's elope," he suggested.

"I don't _WANT_ to elope. I want a real wedding," she pouted, almost whining.

Wilson inhaled through his nose, finding it more and more difficult not to lose his patience with her.

"I don't know what to tell you..." he finally said, slumping his shoulders.

"...Either we have a real wedding in Antigua the weekend of October 15… or we elope," he stated.

"Well, I don't want either of those things," she stated firmly.

"So what are you saying? That either we do what you want or we don't get married at all?" he demanded, as if the notion was ludicrous.

She stared at him, not saying a word.

She then looked down at the bed, staring at the pattern on their comforter and shrugged her shoulder.

Wilson's lips parted as the realization dawned on him that that was exactly what Debbie was saying.

"_Debbie_…" Wilson managed to say in a soft tone, completely stunned.

"I just wanted to get married on a beach in the Caribbean…" she whispered sadly.

A curt, disgusted laugh escaped Wilson's lips.

"Do I even factor into this equation?" he asked.

"Of _COURSE_ you do! That's not what I meant—" she protested.

"You just said you want to get _MARRIED_," he interrupted, pausing for a moment.

"…You didn't say you wanted to marry _ME_," he added somberly.

Before Debbie could respond, Wilson got up from the bed, grabbed his pillow and headed for the living room couch.

TBC…


	32. Chapter 32

**HI EVERYONE!**

**SORRY I TOOK SO LONG TO POST THIS CHAPTER. WORK IS CRAZY.**

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**CHAPTER 32: Please read and comment.**

The next morning, Sophie awoke in her and Chase's bed to the feeling of Chase hand on her breast over her satin camisole and kissing the back of her neck.

She smiled happily as he gently squeezed her breast and skated his thumb across her nipple. She stretched and pressed her body back against his, feeling his morning erection through his boxers against her ass over her panties.

"Mmm… somebody's awake," she quipped.

"Both of us, actually," Chase murmured against her neck, his voice still husky from sleeping as he pushed his cock against her behind again.

Grinning broadly, she reached up a little behind her and caressed his cheek as he fondled her breast.

"Didn't realize the two of you were on different schedules," she teased.

"Have been since junior high," he replied, rubbing his shaft eagerly against her, his lips making their way down to her bare shoulder.

Sophie turned around to face him, wrapping her leg low around his hip.

"I don't know how guys walk around with those things," she said with a grin.

Chase flashed her a dazzling smile and brushed his lips against hers, pulling her closer to him. As they kissed searchingly, she wound her arms around his neck, pressing her body against his. He rolled her onto her back and began to decadently trail his lips down her chin to her neck.

He then slipped down one of the thin straps of her camisole, exposing her breast. She lolled her head back and sighed as he kissed his way down her breast to her nipple.

As he slid his hand in between their bodies, dipping his fingertips under her lace panties, Sophie glanced at the alarm clock on her night- stand. It read 8:45 am.

"No, baby, I can't. "I have to get up and shower," she protested half- heartedly, gently stopping his questing hand with her own.

"No you don't. You smell great," he assured her, taking her hand away from his intended destination.

He shifted down a bit on the bed, found the hem of her camisole and lifted it up, exposing her toned abdomen. Sophie gasped in delight he started to kiss his way down her stomach to her panty line.

"My mom's coming to pick me up in an hour to look at dresses," she said as her breath caught, having no real desire to stop him as he ventured further down her body.

"_I'LL_ be cumming in fifteen minutes. You'll have plenty of time," he murmured after spreading her legs apart, his lips now against the inside of the creamy flesh of her right thigh.

Sophie laughed out loud. "Did you forget about me?" she asked, looking down at him.

He kissed her mound over her panties, causing her to gasp once more at the contact.

"Never," he whispered against her as he began to peel her panties off.

She arched her back, her breath shallowing as he brushed his lips and tongue against her glistening sex, unable to avoid doing the math in her head to figure out if she had enough time to have an orgasm, shower and dress before her mother arrived.

And then she had an idea.

"I know a way we can save time," she managed to say.

Chase looked up from between her legs.

"I'm listening," he said with interest.

A sly smile crept across her face.

"Did you take your Ultram?" she asked. 

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"Oh _god_…" Sophie whimpered over the steady stream of the shower.

Chase had her up against the wall of the shower as he thrust deeply into her, their wet soapy bodies pressed against each other, her legs wrapped around his hips.

With each thrust, her hard nipples rubbed against the top of his chest, causing the friction between her legs to become even more intense.

He buried his face into her neck, moaning as he fucked her, ignoring the dull throb in his ankle that the Ultram just never seemed to be able to suppress.

But he couldn't care less.

Pressing her even harder into the wall, he grabbed the her hips possessively, shifting his position ever so slightly, giving her even more delicious sensations against her clit each time he pushed into her.

"More… don't stop…" she managed to whimper, her voice echoing against the walls of the shower.

He could feel his orgasm building inside him, trying to hold back desperately as long as he possibly could, craving her climax and that look on her face when she did so more than his own.

Still inside her, he lifted her up a bit on his body and clamped his mouth down onto her wet nipple. He sucked on her vigorously, hoping desperately to leave a mark.

"_Ohh!!!_" Sophie gasped at the feeling of his greedy, possessive mouth on her nipple.

Chase moaned into her breast, sucking even harder.

She tightened her legs around his waist as she began to feel her weeping flesh contract hard around his cock.

At the delicious feeling of her velvety walls squeezing him, he let go of her nipple and focused on her face, breathing harder at the anticipation of her bliss.

"Oh _GODDDDDDDD_!" Sophie cried out as her orgasm overpowered her, shutting her eyes tight.

Chase only had a moment to enjoy her response before he forcefully exploded inside her. He buried his face in her neck, groaning at the top of his lungs as the fluttering of her around his cock milked him of his own orgasm.

And then he froze, his eyes popping open.

Because for a brief moment during his own climax, he felt no pain.

The constant throbbing in his ankle actually stopped.

He didn't have too much time to think about it, because an aftershock rocked through his body, causing him to shudder violently.

"You ok" Sophie asked him with concern, her legs still wrapped around him, her body still pushed up against the shower wall, and his cock still inside her.

"…Vicodin…" he managed to breathe out.

Sophie's eyes widened.

"The pain's that bad??" she asked, nervously.

"No… they should… prescribe sex… to relieve pain… instead of Vicodin…" he said in between breaths with an extremely satisfied grin.

She exhaled deeply in great relief, sliding her legs down his hips. He held onto her as he slid out of her, helping her to regain her footing.

"You scared the hell out of me," she told him, smoothing his wet hair out of his eyes.

"I'm sorry," he said, still grinning broadly.

She grinned back. "Yeah, well, it was worth it if I'm the one who put that goofy grin on your face."

Chase laughed and kissed her tenderly, the spray of the shower still on them.

"And I'll tell Cuddy about your new pain management plan when I see her today," she added.

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A few moments later, after rinsing off the remainder of the soap off their bodies, Sophie opened the glass door of their large mosaic tiled steam shower and grabbed one of the bath towels that was hanging on the nearby towel bar.

She wrapped the towel around her body and then grabbed the other towel, handing it to Chase as he carefully limped out of the shower, holding onto the door handle so he wouldn't slip and fall.

"Thanks, baby," he said, kissing her lips.

She smiled and opened the top drawer of their vanity, taking out a wide toothed comb.

"So what are you gonna do today?" she asked him as she began to comb through her long, dark hair.

"I'm supposed to hit balls with your brother and your dad," he replied, wrapping his towel low around his hips after drying himself off.

"You're playing golf?" she asked brightly, looking at him through the mirror.

"Just the driving range. You dad suggested it last night when they were leaving," he told her, shaking his head a bit.

"That's wonderful!" she said happily.

Chase laughed sheepishly. "Not exactly a golf player. Hope I don't embarrass myself too much."

She smiled warmly at him through the mirror. She then turned around to face him, brushing her lips delicately against his.

"You're gonna be great," she assured him, kissing him, thrilled that he was finally doing some sort of physical activity after such a long time.

"Maybe I should take an extra pill, just in case," he wondered aloud, taking the towel off his hips so he could dry his hair with it.

"You're not walking the course," she pointed out.

"Still…" he said, trailing off with a slight shrug.

Before she could respond, she heard the chorus to "_Poker Face_" by Lady Gaga coming from their bedroom.

"That's my cell," she said, dashing out of the bathroom.

"Really," he deadpanned with a grin, following her.

She stuck her tongue out at him playfully as she reached the night-stand and picked up her phone.

She furrowed her brow in confusion when she saw that the display read "**Private Caller.**"

"Hello?" she said into the phone.

"… Hi, Sophie. It's Debbie," Debbie said on the other end after a short pause.

"Hey, what's up?" she asked as Chase limped up behind her and began to untuck the towel that was wrapped tightly around her body, letting it fall to the floor.

"I'm sorry, but I'm not going to be able to go to the Bridal Salon with you today," Debbie said on the other end.

As Chase positioned himself in front of her and began to lave her breasts with his tongue, he didn't notice Sophie's disappointed expression.

"… Is something wrong?" Sophie asked, placing her hand on his shoulder to stop him.

At this, Chase looked up at her.

"What's wrong?" he whispered.

"I don't know," she mouthed back silently, shaking her head.

"I'm… not feeling too good. I think I'm coming down with something," Debbie said unconvincingly.

Sophie paused for a moment before answering her.

"… Ok. I… hope you feel better," she offered.

"Thanks. I'll call you later," Debbie said, hanging up the phone without saying good- bye.

Sophie stared at her phone for a minute before finally closing it to hang up.

"What was that?" Chase asked.

"…Debbie canceled on us. She's not coming," Sophie said.

"She ok?" Chase asked.

Sophie turned down her lower lip. "She said she didn't feel good," she replied, shrugging her shoulder.

Chase arched his eyebrow curiously.

"You think she got sick from something I cooked?" Sophie asked nervously.

"More like something she _HEARD_ than something she ate," Chase replied in disdain, going over to the armoire to retrieve a fresh pair of boxers.

"What are you talking about?" she asked digging through her underwear drawer for a bra and panties.

"You honestly think she's overjoyed to share her wedding date with us?" Chase asked, slipping on his underwear.

"Then why did she agree to it?" Sophie asked.

"Because she figured that was better than looking like a shrew in front of your parents. They didn't exactly welcome her with open arms," he said, digging out a pair of long khaki cargo shorts out of one of the drawers of the armoire.

"… I know," she muttered, slipping on a pair of white lace panties.

As he limped back to the bed to put on the shorts, he noticed her forlorn expression.

"Well this sucks," she mumbled as she put on her bra.

"Don't let it ruin your day," he told her from his position on the bed.

"She's still my maid of honor, which means she has to eventually get fitted for a dress. She can't avoid it forever," Sophie pointed out as she adjusted her breasts into her bra, accentuating her ample cleavage.

"Give her some time. She'll get over it," he said.

"Or they'll get in a huge fight and break off the engagement," she said miserably.

"And then you'll win the pool," Chase quipped, pushing himself off the bed and back to the armoire to find a shirt to wear.

Sophie tsked. She had forgotten about the pool that House and Chase had on Wilson and Debbie's marriage.

Deciding to rig the pool in their favor, Wilson and Debbie planned on staging a fake break- up in the middle of the hospital cafeteria, and then Sophie would collect the winnings, having placed a bet that they'd never make it to the altar.

But Sophie never imagined that it might actually happen.

"I've gotta get dressed," was all she said, her tone still forlorn as she went to the closet to find a sundress.

Feeling badly for her, he followed her over to the closet, grabbing her wrist lightly before she could go inside it.

"Hey," he said, turning her around to face him.

"I was just kidding," he assured her.

She nodded with a flat smile, her disappointment still evident. He touched her chin to make her look into his beautiful aquamarine eyes.

"But I was serious when I said don't let this ruin your day," he added, lovingly.

"Ok," she said softly, her lips finally turning up at the corners.

He kissed her lightly on her lips and smiled at her.

He then traced her face and breasts with his eyes, feeling his erection making a comeback. He then pulled her closer to him, loving how her almost naked body felt against him.

"Are you gonna buy lingerie for under your dress today, too?" he asked huskily in her ear, thickening his accent just a bit for her as he wrapped his arms around her body.

Still clad only in her bra and panties, she shivered in pleasure at his question and at his voice.

"You want me to?" she asked almost shyly, feeling a blush form on her cheeks.

"Mhm," he murmured, nuzzling his nose against her ear.

She fluttered her eyes closed, once again succumbing to the spell that he seemed to have over her.

"What do you want?" she whispered sexily.

He moved his hand up to her waist, his fingertips caressing her bare skin just above her hip.

"Something innocent," he whispered back.

"…Ok," she manged to reply. 

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A little after ten that morning, Sophie, Susan Wilson and Cuddy walked together down the sidewalk on Main Street in Princeton Forrestal Village until they reached Exquisite Bride Boutique.

The outside of the boutique was all glass, displaying several of their collection of elegant and designer bridal gowns.

As the three women passed underneath the teal blue awning and entered the store, a cheery sounding bell dinged to alert the staff of their presence.

Sophie's mouth gaped open a bit as she looked around the spacious and tastefully decorated boutique, her eyes scanning over all of the white and ivory gowns beautifully displayed throughout the store.

Sophie and Cuddy exchanged smiles at Sophie's awe.

"There's so many…" was all she said, still looking around the room with widened eyes.

"Just be glad I didn't take you to Klinefeld in Manhattan," Susan quipped.

Cuddy laughed. "I hear that women have fistfights over dresses there," she said.

"They do," Susan assured her.

Just then, a woman in her late fifties emerged from the back of the boutique. She had shoulder length highlighted blond hair and was dressed in a chic mauve suit with a pencil skirt.

"You must be Sophie. I'm Marie, your bridal consultant," the woman said, offering her hand to Sophie with a confident smile.

Sophie smiled back and shook her hand.

"It's very nice to meet you. This is my mom, Susan and my friend Lisa, who is going to be one of my bridesmaids," Sophie said, gesturing to her mom and Cuddy as she introduced them.

After shaking their hands and exchanging pleasantries, Marie turned her attention back to Sophie.

"Sophie, I already have some beautiful gowns in mind for you. So why don't we start trying things on while Lisa and your mom look around a bit?" she offered.

"Ok," Sophie said with a smile, starting to feel her excitement bubble within her.

Susan, sharing her daughter's excitement, gave Sophie a smile and a nod of encouragement before she followed Marie into the back of the boutique, where the fitting rooms and gowns were located.

As the two of them disappeared into the back, Susan and Cuddy exchanged another smile as they headed over to the far right wall of the boutique to browse through the selection of bridesmaid's dresses that were on display.

"I hope I can find something that'll fit me in October," Cuddy remarked as she perused through a rack of rayon spaghetti strapped dresses.

"I went to my cousin's wedding when I was nine months pregnant with Sophie and I found a dress. You'll be fine," Susan reassured her.

Cuddy nodded and smiled as she walked over to a nearby rack of more dresses, not entirely convinced.

"So are you and House getting married anytime soon?" Susan asked as she took out a strapless pale yellow wispy dress off the rack.

Cuddy arched her eyebrows, a bit taken aback by Susan's blunt question.

"I figured you'd be used to the direct approach after all these years of dealing with House," Susan joked.

Cuddy laughed at that. "We haven't really discussed it," she replied.

Susan nodded, turning down her lower lip.

"Do you want to get married?" Susan asked her.

At this, Cuddy paused for a moment, a contemplative look forming on her features.

"…I don't know. I kinda like the ways things are now, you know?" she said.

Susan nodded and smiled in understanding, turning her attention back to the dress she had picked out.

"I mean eventually we should. We're having a baby together—" Cuddy began.

"That shouldn't be a reason for you to get married," Susan interrupted, putting the dress back on the rack.

Cuddy's eyebrows popped once again, this time even more surprised than before. Susan exhaled and turned to face Cuddy.

"Sophie once told me that one of the most common mistakes that people make in poker is that players go All In way more often than they should," Susan said.

Cuddy's lips parted as she realized what Susan was saying to her through her metaphor.

"You think Sophie's rushing into marriage, don't you?" Cuddy asked in a somber tone.

Susan gave her a sad smile, thinking how much she should actually reveal to Cuddy what she was positive that no one knew except for her and Sophie.

"…I think that Robert's a wonderful man and that I'd be thrilled to have him as my son- in- law…" Susan began.

"…But I also don't think that they know each other well enough yet," she finished, deciding to keep her daughter's secret.

"Did you tell her that?" Cuddy asked.

Susan shook her head. "No."

"Why not?"

Susan pressed her lips together before answering.

"Because she deserves to be happy," she replied with a hint of sadness. 

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A short time after, Sophie came out of the back of the boutique with Marie following her.

"Mom?" Sophie called out.

Upon hearing Sophie's voice, Susan and Cuddy headed for the back of the store, where there was a few sets of large three- way mirrors situated.

But they both stopped in their tracks when they saw Sophie, their breaths catching in their throat.

"Oh my goodness," Susan gasped.

Sophie was wearing a sleeveless ivory silk organza trumpet style gown. The V- neckline was scalloped with Alencon lace, framing her breasts and cleaveage perfectly. The form- fitting empire bodice was accented with ivory satin ribbon and flowed elegantly into a 2- tiered lace accented skirt.

She then turned around so her mom and Cuddy could see the back of the dress, which was a low open v- back, leading down to a chapel train.

"We'd bustle the dress for the reception," Marie told them, fluffing out the train as she turned.

"You _HAVE_ to get married in this dress. You look stunning! When Chase sees you in this, he's going to pass out," Cuddy gushed.

Sophie laughed as she went over to one of the full- length mirrors to take a better look at herself.

She smiled happily at her reflection, admiring the beautiful dress from all angles.

But then suddenly, she felt her heart thumping rapidly in her chest.

As she began to hear her pounding heart in her ears, she put her hand on her chest, her breathing beginning to become labored.

"Honey, what's wrong?" Susan asked with concern, walking closer to her daughter.

"I can't… I can't… breathe," Sophie managed to say, her breath becoming more shallow as her heart rate sped up.

Cuddy quickly moved towards her and placed two fingers on the inside of Sophie's wrist to take her pulse.

"My heart's…racing…" Sophie stammered.

She then shuddered, suddenly breaking out in a cold sweat.

"You're having a panic attack. Sit down," Cuddy ordered her.

Sophie nodded nervously as her entire body began to shake. Cuddy and her mother led her over to a nearby plush couch and helped her sit down in the dress.

"Could you get her some water please and a paper bag if you have one?" Cuddy asked Marie.

"Of course," Marie said quickly and ran to the back.

"You're going to be fine. Just try to breathe easy," Cuddy said, rubbing Sophie's back to try to calm her down.

She nodded, trying to control her breathing with little success.

A few seconds later, Marie came back with a paper bag and a bottle of water. Sophie placed the paper bag over her mouth and took a few deep breaths into it. Cuddy then opened the bottle of water and handed it to Sophie. She took a few long sips.

"Feeling any better?" Cuddy asked.

"A little," Sophie said, with a nod, able to take a few deeper breaths.

Susan glanced up at Cuddy with worry, but Cuddy shook her head and smiled a bit, assuring Susan that Sophie was fine.

After a few moments, Sophie was finally able to take a deep breath. She leaned forward, placing her elbow on her knee and her head heavily in her hands.

"God, I'm so embarrassed," Sophie muttered, feeling how damp her forehead was.

"Don't be. I have at least three new brides faint on me every week when they see themselves in a dress for the first time," Marie assured her.

All three women laughed at that.

But both Sophie and Susan knew that she didn't have an acute panic attack because she saw herself in a wedding dress.

"...Is it ok if we have a few minutes?" Sophie asked Marie.

"Absolutely. Take your time," Marie said with a friendly smile before retreating to the back of the store.

After Marie left, Susan smoothed the loose strands of hair away from her daughter's face and tucked them behind her ear, smiling sympathetically at her daughter.

But Sophie was frowning.

"I have to tell him, don't I?" she asked her mother sadly.

"Yes you do, honey," Susan said gently, the same smile on her face.

"But If I tell him, he won't want to marry me," she said, the tears starting to well up in her eyes.

"That's ridiculous. Robert loves you. Of course he'll still want to marry you," Susan reassured her.

Sophie's lip quivered as she started to cry, shaking her head. Susan pulled her daughter close to her and held her in a tight hug as she cried softly on her shoulder.

Not having any idea what was going on, Cuddy rubbed Sophie's back and looked at Susan for an explanation.

"Can I tell her?" Susan asked Sophie.

Sophie nodded against her mother's shoulder, not looking up.

Holding her daughter in her arms, Susan took a deep breath before she spoke.

"She can't have children," Susan said.

Cuddy's lips parted in shock upon hearing the news. As Sophie started to cry a little bit more, Cuddy felt her own lip quiver and her heart break for her.

She continued to rub her back as Sophie cried, feeling her own tears start to fall down her cheeks.

TBC…


	33. Chapter 33

**HI EVERYONE!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER. THANKS FOR BEING SO PATIENT AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS!**

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**CHAPTER 33: Please read and comment.**

House didn't drag himself out of bed until 11 am that Saturday morning.

Since Cuddy had gone wedding dress shopping with Sophie, Debbie and Susan, she wasn't around to get them bagels and coffee like she usually did on the weekends.

He figured that if he wanted to eat anything that morning, he'd better get up.

Swinging his legs over the side of the bed, he rubbed his aching thigh as he always did. After taking a Vicodin, he stood up and limped his way to the bathroom.

He turned the faucet to as hot as he could stand it and let the water pelt down on his body for a few minutes before grabbing the bottle of Dove body wash that Cuddy kept on the recessed shelf against the wall of the shower.

He took a little sniff from the top of the bottle and smiled a bit. He'd never admit it, but he loved the fact that he and Cuddy shared soap.

After working up a generous lather, he washed his body and rinsed, paying particular attention to his morning erection, which was at full salute.

It only took him a few rough strokes for him to reach his peak, especially since he pulled up one of his many "sex with the Dean of Medicine on her desk in various completely inappropriate outfits for the office" fantasies out of the recesses of his mind.

Afterwards, he got out of the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist, feeling only marginally satisfied, which made him smirk.

"Can't beat the real thing," he said aloud to the bathroom.

After brushing his teeth and carelessly drying most of himself off, he let the rest of his body air dry while grabbing a pair of fresh boxers out of the drawer.

He then pulled on a pair of jeans and a white graphic t- shirt with a skull and crossbones on it, gave himself a quick glance in the mirror and decided that he was at least halfway decent to go out in public.

As he slipped on his sneakers and grabbed the keys to his motorcycle, he decided that he and Cuddy were way overdue for a bath together.

And that this situation would have to be rectified as soon as possible. 

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A short while later, House parked his bike in front of the local bagel shop that Cuddy always went to on the weekends.

After turning off the engine, he dismounted the bike, took off his helmet, unlocked his cane from the latch on the side, and entered the shop.

Being that it was almost noon by the time he got there, the line had already stretched to the back of the small shop.

House snorted in digust as he got on the back of the line, thinking to himself if he should play the cripple card to cut in front of other people so he could get out of there faster.

But all thoughts of that immediately stopped when he recognized the young woman sitting alone in a corner booth on the far end of the shop, reading a newspaper.

Her pin straight blonde hair was pulled back in a ponytail. She was wearing a light pink scoop neck t- shirt, a faded pair of jeans and flip flops.

As the line and House moved forward, House didn't take his eyes off her.

"_WHY IS SHE HERE?_" House thought to himself. "_SHE'S SUPPOSED TO BE AT THE BRIDAL PLACE TRYING ON DRESSES_."

When he finally reached the front of the line, he placed his order for a sesame bagel with cream cheese and a large cup of regular coffee, barely looking at the teenage boy who was taking his order.

At that moment, Debbie looked up from her newspaper and took a sip of her own coffee.

As she did, she absentmindedly gazed at the line of people waiting to place their orders for the food.

And then she saw House.

Her red and swollen eyes locked on House's bright blue ones.

And they just stared at each other for a moment.

Neither one of them made a move to go talk to the other. House remained at the front of the line, waiting for his food, while Debbie remained in her seat, just staring back at him.

He then looked down at her left hand, which was resting on the top of the table.

The two carat engagement ring that Wilson had given her was no longer on her finger.

"Hey, mister," one of the clerks said from behind the counter.

House looked away from Debbie and turned towards another teenage boy who was impatiently holding out his hand to House.

"That's five bucks," the kid said.

House nodded a bit, dug a twenty out of his pocket and gave it to the kid, turning back towards Debbie.

But when he did, she was already gone, leaving her half- eaten bagel, newspaper and coffee cup behind on the top of the table.

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At around the same time, Wilson, Chase and Martin were on the driving range at Bunker Hill Golf Club in Princeton.

They had been hitting balls for over an hour, enjoying the sun and making small talk here and there.

Chase had noticed that Wilson had been unusually quiet since they got there, concentrating intently on his swing and driving the ball.

But it was working for him, because he had been hitting the ball perfectly straight consistently between two- hundred and two hundred and fifty yards with each drive.

But the truth was, Chase really didn't give much thought to Wilson's silence. He was too preoccupied with the shooting pain in his left ankle that he had been feeling for the last ten minutes every time he shifted his weight.

He had thought about taking an extra Ultram before he left that morning, but Sophie had reminded him that he wasn't actually walking the golf course.

And at the time, he reluctantly agreed with her.

But now, when the pain was starting to radiate up his ankle, he knew that he couldn't avoid it any longer.

He dug his prescription bottle out of the pocket in his khakis and popped an Ultram in his mouth.

"You ok?" Martin Wilson asked.

Chase turned around to see his future father- in- law behind him with a concerned smile on his face.

"I'm fine," Chase reassured him dismissively.

"_THWACK_"

Both Martin and Chase turned towards Wilson, who was positioned in front of Chase on the driving range. He was holding his club over his shoulder after another near perfect drive.

The other two men turned to watch the ball sail beautifully just a bit past the 275- yard marker.

"Nice," Martin said, impressed with his son.

Wilson nodded gruffly, but said nothing in response, looking down at his bucket of golf- balls, which was empty.

He shoved his club back in his golf bag, forcefully and grabbed the bucket off the grass.

"I'm going to the pro shop to fill up," he announced.

"No need," a familiar voice said from behind them.

The three men turned around and saw House leaning against a tree just situated behind the driving range, holding a bucket of golf balls that were filled to the top.

He limped the few steps towards Wilson and gave him the bucket.

"I've got your balls right here," House told him.

"How long have you been standing there waiting to use that awful joke?" Wilson snarked, taking the balls from him.

"Long enough to know that I haven't seen you play this well since your second divorce," House replied, shooting him a meaningful glance.

Wilson kept his eye on him, a sickening feeling growing in the pit of his stomach that House wasn't at the driving range to hit a few balls with Chase and his dad.

But he said nothing, placing the bucket of balls on the ground beside his tee. He then grabbed his driver out of the golf bag and resumed his stance.

Chase and Martin exchanged curious glances with each other, but decided not to comment.

House watched Wilson intently as he prepared to take another swing, waiting for just the right moment to interrupt him.

"Saw Debbie this morning," House finally said, when Wilson was just about to hit the ball.

Upon hearing that, Wilson stopped himself mid- swing and tossed the club into the grass, letting out an exasperated and rather loud sigh. He turned towards House, who was wearing one of his smug looks on his faces.

"You went to the bridal salon with the girls? Find something to match your eyes?" Wilson snarked.

Chase chuckled slightly at that, a fleeting image of House wearing a strapless blue bridesmaids dress crossing his mind.

"She wasn't at the bridal salon," House replied evenly, ignoring Chase's amusement.

"She was having breakfast at the Bagel Place on Harrison. Alone," he continued.

"And based on how bloodshot and puffy her eyes were, I'd say that she'd been crying for the better part of the night," House added.

Martin arched his eyebrow at his son.

"Is everything ok?" he asked.

Wilson drew in a breath, knowing that there was no way he could avoid this discussion, now that House had brought it to everyone's attention.

"… As of now… the wedding's postponed," Wilson said.

"What happened?" Chase asked.

"Debbie… doesn't want to share our wedding date," he replied.

"So she broke off your engagement?!" Chase exclaimed.

"We've _POSTPONED_," Wilson repeated, his voice a bit edgy.

"So does that mean that Sophie wins the pot, or does Debbie have to give the ring back for that to happen?" House asked, maintaining his calm expression.

"Leave it to you to bring that up," Wilson said.

"What's he talking about?" Chase asked, his brow furrowed.

Wilson glanced at House, then at Chase, and then down at the grass below his feet.

"…We rigged the betting pool," Wilson muttered with embarrassment.

Chase raised his eyebrows ever so slightly at Wilson's admission.

"Debbie and I found out about the pool early on. And we weren't happy about it," Wilson began.

"So… Sophie got an idea…" he continued.

Chase scrunched up his face a bit. "_Sophie_ got an idea?" he asked.

"We worked it out that Debbie and I would pretend to break- up in the hospital cafeteria before the wedding. Sophie placed a bet that we wouldn't make it to the altar. Then she'd rake in the winnings and give it to us," Wilson explained.

"And… what were you planning on telling the entire hospital after you got married?" Chase asked in amusement.

"That we reconciled," Wilson mumbled.

Chase only paused for a moment before letting out a laugh.

"So the bridezilla thing…" he began, trailing off.

"Was an act, yes," Wilson confirmed.

"Originally," House pointed out.

Wilson glared angrily at House and then turned back to Chase.

"You're not angry at Sophie that she didn't clue you in on this, are you?" Wilson asked.

"I'm actually impressed that she was able to hide that from me. I had no idea," Chase admitted.

"What a complete load of crap," House stated bluntly.

"Don't start," Chase said in annoyance.

"You're either trying to get in good with your future father- in- law by pretending to be impressed with future wife's ability to lie _OR_ you're really that stupid," House said, gesturing to Martin with his cane as he spoke.

Martin arched his eyebrow at Chase, considering House's statement. Chase looked nervously from Martin back to House.

But he found that he had no response.

"That's the problem with love. It blinds you from who a person really is," House said, keeping a cool, even gaze on Chase.

"Maybe Cuddy should get her eyes checked, then," Chase snarked.

"Excuse me," Martin interrupted, taking a step towards House.

He then took a defensive posture, placing his hands on his hips, staring squarely at House.

"Just what exactly are you insinuating about my daughter?" Martin asked, his tone matching his stance.

House looked Martin up and down.

"You think I can get a picture of you and your son standing like that together? It'd make a great holiday card," House said.

Martin folded his arms across his chest, waiting for House's response to his question with a hard look in his eyes.

"Oh relax. I'm not saying anything about your daughter that you don't already know," House said.

Martin let out a curt laugh of disgust. "And what does that mean?" he demanded.

"Dad…" Chase said, placing a hand gently on Martin's shoulder.

"_DAD_?" House repeated. "That was quick," he snarked, in an attempt to deflect the heat off him.

"House, either make your point or get the hell out of here," Wilson warned him.

At that, House looked directly into Chase's eyes.

"Sophie's hiding something from you," House stated.

"Oh will you _STOP_ it already—" Chase began angrily.

"Something a lot worse than sneaking off to a poker game without telling you or rigging a betting pool," House began.

"And I'm pretty sure that your new daddy knows about it," he added.

Chase turned to Martin, waiting for him to laugh in House's face.

But he didn't.

Instead, Martin kept his gaze on Chase for only a moment before looking away from him, rubbing his face with his hand gravely.

Wilson looked back and forth between House and his father, completely confused.

"Dad… what's he talking about?" Wilson asked.

Martin inhaled slightly, his eyes flitting back from House, to his son, back to Chase, who wore a bewildered expression as well.

"Rob…" Martin began.

"… this is something that you need to talk to Sophie about. Not me," was all he said.

Chase shook his head a bit, his lips parted, having no idea what Martin could possibly be talking about.

But he noticed the heartache on Martin's face as he spoke.

"Is… something wrong with Sophie?" Chase asked nervously.

Martin pressed his lips together, pausing before answering.

"You really need to talk to Sophie," he repeated, refusing to say anything else, his expression just as pained as before.

Chase felt a wave of anxiety rise within him, along with a surge of pain in his ankle.

"So now that you're canceling the wedding, you're free for bowling again, right?" House asked Wilson.

TBC…


	34. Chapter 34

**HI EVERYONE!**

**OK, WE HAVE LESS THAN TEN CHAPTERS BEFORE THE END OF THIS FIC.**

**I HOPE YOU ALL DECIDE TO STICK AROUND UNTIL THEN!!**

**THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL REVIEWS. I RESPONDED TO THEM INDIVIDUALLY.**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 34: Please read and comment.**

"Are you sure you don't want us to come in with you?" Cuddy asked.

Sophie, Cuddy and Susan were in Susan's car, parked in front of Sophie and Chase's home.

"No, I'm not," Sophie replied with a curt laugh as she looked down at her lap.

Susan wore a sympathetic, yet melancholy smile on her face as she placed her hand on her daughter's leg.

"He _loves_ you," Susan reminded her. "He's going to take this better than you think."

"I wish I had your confidence," Sophie mumbled.

Susan turned her attention to Cuddy in the back seat, hoping she'd jump in and add her encouragement.

But her expression was just as forlorn as Sophie's.

"We can go in with you," Susan said, focusing on Sophie again.

"No. I have to do this myself," she replied.

She then unbuckled her seatbelt, leaned over to the driver's seat and kissed her mother on her cheek.

"I'll call you later," Sophie mumbled against her cheek.

She then got out of her mother's car, put on her prescription sunglasses and headed up the walkway to her home, holding her head as high as she could.

From the car, Cuddy pressed her lips together, her heart breaking for Sophie as she watched her go up the walkway and go into her house.

"Would you like to come in the front?" Susan asked.

"… Sure," Cuddy replied.

She then opened the back door and exited the car.

But as she placed her hand on the door handle, she felt a sudden cramping sensation in her belly.

She gripped onto the handle as the pain radiated through her lower stomach to her pelvis, shutting her eyes for a second.

"Lisa?" Susan said from inside the car.

But Cuddy didn't respond.

She just kept her hand on her belly, her eyes closed, and a tight grip on the handle.

Susan immediately got out of the car and ran to the passenger side.

"What's wrong?" Susan asked as calmly as she could.

"I… I don't know," Cuddy stammered nervously, still clutching onto her stomach.

"Come. I'll take you home," Susan said, helping Cuddy into the passenger seat. 

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Chase was anxiously limping back and forth in his living room, waiting for Sophie to return from dress shopping, his mind replaying the conversation that he, Martin and House had at the driving range earlier that day.

"_SOPHIE'S HIDING SOMETHING FROM YOU_," House had said.

"_SOMETHING A LOT WORSE THAN SNEAKING OFF TO A POKER GAME WITHOUT TELLING YOU OR RIGGING A BETTING POOL_."

Chase racked his brain, trying to think of anything that Sophie could have been possibly hiding from him.

"_ROB… THIS IS SOMETHING YOU NEED TO TALK TO SOPHIE ABOUT. NOT ME_," Martin had told him.

And for some reason, it was something that Wilson didn't seem to know about.

"What would she tell her parents but not her own brother?" Chase agonized to himself.

"If she didn't want to tell Wilson, it means that she thought that he would tell _ME_," he reasoned.

He continued to pace in his living room, ignoring the throbbing in his ankle, when he heard the key turn in the lock of his front door.

He froze in his spot, having no idea if he should go to the door, or if he should stay in the living room. 

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Sophie walked through the foyer and into the living room, still wearing her sunglasses.

She stopped in her tracks when she saw Chase sitting on the couch. His left leg was propped up on the coffee table.

"What are you doing home? I thought you were playing golf today," she said, surprised to see him.

"We ended early," he replied.

"Were you in pain?" she asked with concern.

"House showed up," he said, keeping a still gaze on her.

Sophie furrowed her brow and chuckled a bit. "So you left? I don't blame you."

"He said you were hiding something from me," Chase stated softly.

Sophie felt her heart thump in her ears, thinking to herself how House could possibly know what she had been hiding.

"And your dad said that it was something only you could tell me," he added.

She stared at him for a moment longer.

Finally, she drew in a breath and let it out, her shoulders slumping a bit.

She then took off her sunglasses and tossed them on the coffee table. Chase's eyes widened as he saw that her eyes were all red and puffy.

"I had a panic attack in the salon," she told him wearily.

"I tried on a dress, my heart started racing, I couldn't breathe and I broke out in a sweat," she added, rubbing her forehead with her hand.

At that moment, realization dawned on Chase.

"You're not ready to get married," he stated.

Sophie took her hand off her forehead and stared at Chase in complete shock. She watched him as he pushed himself off the couch and limped over to her with an understanding smile on his face.

Once he reached her, he gently took her hand in his and gazed into her eyes.

"We've only been together for nine months and we've only been living together for a few weeks," he began.

"Robbie… no—" she protested, shaking her head.

"We don't have to get married this soon if you're not ready—" he continued in a sweet voice.

"I fell down the stairs," she blurted out.

For a moment, Chase just stared at her in silence, not entirely sure that he had heard her correctly.

"…W-when?" he finally asked.

"Three years ago," she said.

Chase still kept his bewildered gaze on her.

"…I don't understand," he said.

Sophie took his hand and led him back to the couch. Once they were seated, she took a moment to collect herself as Chase waited patiently for her to start explaining.

"It was the end of my first semester in med school. Finals were coming up, and my friends and I were all a mess. We'd all been pulling countless all- nighters and we were all fried," she began in a flat voice.

"So one Saturday night, we decided to just blow everything off and go out for drinks..."

"At the bar, we played this game, called 'It's Been Way Too Long Since.' We sat around the table and each of us took turns saying something that we haven't done in a really long time. And if any of us also hadn't done that thing in a long time, we took a drink..."

"It's been way too long since I ate something that wasn't take- out. It's been way too long since I took a shower. You get the idea," she explained.

Chase nodded, following her so far.

"So my friend Michael said… 'It's been way too long since I've had sex…' and he took a drink…" she said, trailing off.

"And so did I," she added, meekly.

"… and that night he took me home…" she continued, looking down at her lap.

"He raped you?!" Chase interrupted, horrified.

Sophie immediately looked up, shocked at the conclusion that Chase had come to,

"No, no. It was nothing like that! We were close and we'd liked each other for a long time," Sophie reassured him.

Chase breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh thank god," he said, leaning back on the couch.

For some reason, Chase's reaction only made her feel worse about what she was about to tell him. She swallowed, gathering up her strength once more.

"Three months later… Michael and I were leaving the Boston University Library after a late night cram session. When I got to the edge of staircase, I suddenly got very dizzy, lost my balance and fell down the stairs," she said.

"What happened?" he demanded.

"Michael took me to the hospital. The fall caused a sprained wrist, a mild concussion…" she paused, bracing herself for the rest of the story.

"… and a miscarriage," she finally said, staring into Chase's eyes.

Chase was stunned.

"You… you were _PREGNANT_?!" he clarified.

"Ten weeks," she replied. "I didn't even know it because I had no symptoms and my periods were so screwed up because of all the stress from school that I didn't even realize I was late."

A glazed look appeared over Chase's features.

"…_Ten weeks_…" he whispered, his mind putting the pieces together.

She looked down at her lap in shame, a sickening feeling rising within her that Chase already knew what she was about to say.

"I needed a vacuum aspiration and a D & C… the procedure caused intrauterine adhesions…" she said, barely above a whisper.

"You can't have children," Chase stated softly, his voice cracking.

She shook her head, still not looking up at him.

Chase felt as if he was in the Twilight Zone.

"But… we've been using birth control. You're… you're on the pill," he stammered.

"It's for regulating my periods," she whispered.

"We used to use condoms!!" he exclaimed.

Still not able to meet his eyes, she kept her head down, twisting her fingers nervously.

"I'm sorry," was all she could say.

Chase stared at her incredulously.

"You're _SORRY?!_" he demanded. "How could you keep something like this from me?!"

"How could I _POSSIBLY_ tell you?!" she suddenly cried out, slamming her hands down on the couch in frustration.

Chase was taken aback at her sudden outburst. She pressed her lips together, desperately holding the tears back that were threatening to escape.

"I see you with the babies in the NICU. You're _WONDERFUL_ with them. I know how much you want a family. How could I disappoint you like that?" she asked him.

"So what were you gonna do? Wait until we started trying and then pretend to be heartbroken when we couldn't conceive?!" he demanded.

"…I don't know," she replied honestly, her voice soft and meek again.

He exhaled curtly, his lips parting in a sarcastic, disgusted smile.

But he said nothing.

"Robbie, please say something," she begged.

"What the hell do you want me to say?! That it's ok? That I love you even though you've been deceiving me all this time?" he demanded angrily.

"…We can still have a family. We can adopt—" she began in a small voice.

"_DON'T YOU GET IT? IT NOT ABOUT A FAMILY!!_" he yelled at her, causing a surging pain to shoot up his ankle.

She looked away again, too ashamed to meet his eyes.

"You lied to me," he said, forcing himself to calm down.

And then it dawned on him.

"You've been lying to me since I met you," he said, barely able to get the words out.

By now, hot tears were starting to roll down her cheeks. She still couldn't look at him, wishing the floor would swallow her up.

"Why would you do something like that?" he asked, quietly.

"Because I was just another pretty girl, remember?" she said, weakly.

A curt laugh escaped his lips. "Gimme a break—"

"If you were engaged to Cameron and not me, and she told you _EXACTLY_ what I just did, would you have gotten this angry?" she asked flatly.

Chase paused, having not expected her to ask him such a question.

"You would have told her it was ok. You would have said it didn't matter. That you could still be happy together and find another way because you love her," she said without any emotion.

"But you can't say that to me," she added.

"...I just… wish you would've told me," he said softly.

She nodded. "So you wouldn't have wasted your time on me," she said, her voice still flat.

They sat there on the couch in silence. She kept her gaze on him, waiting for him to say something else.

But he never did.

Instead, he just looked away from her.

She nodded again slowly in understanding, brusquely wiping the tears off her face with her fingertips.

Then, finding an inner strength that she didn't even realize that she had, she took her engagement ring off her finger and placed it quietly on the coffee table.

Chase looked at the ring, sadness enveloping his heart.

But he couldn't bring himself to look at her.

Instead, he just kept staring at the solitaire diamond she had picked in Antigua, when everything was wonderful between them.

"I'll go pack my things," she whispered, getting up off the couch.

"Where are you gonna go?" he asked softly.

That one question hit her like a truck.

Because she realized that he wasn't stopping her from leaving.

That he wanted her to leave, and that he was only asking her this out of mild courtesy.

And for some reason, that only made her feel stronger inside.

"What the fuck do you care?" she whispered before heading up the stairs.

TBC...


	35. Chapter 35

**HI**** EVERYONE!**

**SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG TO POST THIS CHAPTER. I HAD SOME TECHNICAL TROUBLE.**

**BUT HERE IT IS.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 35: Please read and comment.**

After Sophie had gone into the House, Cuddy had exited the back of Susan's car intending on sitting in the front passenger seat.

But as she placed her hand on the door handle, she felt a sudden cramping sensation in her belly.

She gripped onto the handle as the sharp pains radiated through her lower stomach to her pelvis, shutting her eyes for a second.

"Lisa?" Susan said from inside the car.

But Cuddy didn't respond.

She just kept her hand on her belly, her eyes closed, and a tight grip on the handle.

Susan immediately got out of the car and ran to the passenger side.

"What's wrong?" Susan asked as calmly as she could.

"I… I don't know," Cuddy stammered nervously, still clutching onto her stomach.

"Come. I'll take you home," Susan said, helping Cuddy into the passenger seat.

Cuddy nodded, wincing as the cramping in her belly continued. Susan hurried around the front of the car and opened the door to the driver's seat.

But as Cuddy reached behind her for the seatbelt, she felt wetness pool between her legs.

She looked down at her lap and froze.

The front of her tan Capri pants were stained bright red.

"Oh… god…" Cuddy whispered.

Susan froze for a moment, still standing outside the car, holding the driver's door open, staring at the large, bright red stain in Cuddy's lap.

"I'm taking you the hospital," Susan declared firmly as she quickly slid into the drivers seat and buckled her seatbeat.

Cuddy didn't say anything.

She only continued to stare at her lap, in a daze.

Susan dug into her left pants pocket and whipped out her cell phone while she put her car in gear with her right.

"What's House's cell number?" Susan demanded.

Cuddy slowly turned her head towards Susan. She blinked once over her glazed eyes.

She felt like she was dreaming.

"… I don't… I don't remember," she said softly, still dazed.

Susan only stared at her for a second longer before scrolling down her list of contacts and pressing "SEND" to the one she wanted as she drove down the street at breakneck speed. 

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"I'll go pack my things," Sophie whispered, getting up off the couch.

"Where are you gonna go?" Chase asked softly.

"…What the fuck do you care?" she muttered before heading up the stairs.

She went up the stairs and entered their bedroom, slamming the door behind her.

She then grabbed her suitcase from their walk- in closet, and placed it roughly on top of their bed.

But after she unzipped it and stared at the empty suitcase, her lower lip began to quiver uncontrollably and hot tears began to stream down her cheeks.

Her knees grew weak and her legs then sank from underneath her.

She collapsed to the floor, putting her head in her hands as she began to cry aloud.

She had no idea that Chase was still in the living room, sitting on the couch, completely torn inside as he listened to her agonizing sobs from all the way downstairs.

One part of him just wanted to go to her and tell her that it didn't matter that she couldn't have children. That everything would be ok between them because he loved her.

Because he did.

But the rest of him felt too hurt and betrayed to move off his spot on the couch.

She had lied to him all this time.

Which meant that she didn't believe that he loved her enough to understand.

He glanced at the elegant solitaire engagement ring that he had purchased for her, which was now lying on the coffee table.

The ring that Sophie fell in love with as soon as she saw it in Antigua.

Just like she had fallen in love with him when she first saw him.

His mind skipped back to how understanding she had been when he got hooked on Vicodin after injuring his ankle.

How she had stuck by him and encouraged him to take the job in the NICU after wanting to quit medicine for good after the complication of his surgery left him in chronic pain and with a permanent limp.

How she had uprooted her entire life at Boston to move in with him. How she had transferred schools, not caring in the least that she would have to repeat her Grand Rounds.

And how she tried so hard to give up her own addiction of poker just to make him happy.

She did everything to make him happy.

And then it hit him.

"What am I _DOING_?!" Chase asked aloud to the empty living room.

He then pushed himself off the couch and limped over to the staircase, leaving his cane behind.

But before he could start to make his way up the stairs, Sophie came bounding down the staircase, holding her cell phone.

"What's House's cell number?" she demanded hurriedly of Chase, her voice filled urgency.

Chase shook his head in complete bewilderment, watching her as she reached the bottom of the stairs and rushed past him.

"… It's… in my phone…" Chase began confused as he slowly reaching for his own cell phone in his pocket. 

"Call him _RIGHT NOW_ and tell him to meet us at the hospital," Sophie ordered him as she grabbed her purse from the floor where she had left it.

"What's going on?" Chase asked, his own nervousness rising within him.

"Cuddy's having severe cramping and she's bleeding," Sophie stated, trying to remain calm as she frantically searched for her keys.

It only took Chase one second before he grabbed his cane and tossed his cell phone at her, which she caught clumsily.

"You call him. I'll drive," he told her firmly, grabbing her hand in his and leading her out the front door of their home. 

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House was sitting in a lounge chair his and Cuddy's back yard, taking full advantage of the fact that Cuddy was out dress shopping with the other ladies by enjoying a cigar and a beer when his cell phone rang in his pocket.

He let it ring a few times before finally pulling it out, rolling his eyes in annoyance when he saw the word "**WOMBAT**" appear on his Caller ID.

"What does he want?" House muttered as he opened the phone.

"What do you want?" House demanded into the phone, expecting to hear Chase's annoying accent on the other end.

"House, it's Sophie. Listen to me—" she began.

"Oh, it's _MRS_. Wombat. You guys answering each other's phones now?" House snarked.

"Cuddy's bleeding and cramping," Sophie stated flatly, her voice quavering slightly.

For a moment, House was completely silent on the other end, her words registering in his mind.

"... Where is she?" he finally asked in a gruff voice, the panic rising up within him.

"She's with my mom in the car. They're on their way to the hospital," Sophie told him, trying to keep as calm as she could.

"How bad is the bleeding?" House demanded.

She paused for a moment, debating whether or not to tell House the truth.

That when she had asked her mom the exact same question, that she had told her that the front of Cuddy's pants were completely stained with bright red blood.

"… She didn't say," Sophie finally said.

"Call your mom and tell her to take Cuddy in through the back entrance of the ER and that I'll meet her up at Dr. Sobol's office. I'll be there in five minutes," House said as he scrambled out of the lounge chair.

"…The back entrance?" Sophie asked, confused.

"Just _DO_ it!" House barked.

Sophie nodded quickly.

"Ok," she said and hung up.

House hung up own phone and limped as fast as he could to the front yard without bothering to lock the front door of their home, put on his helmet, straddled his motorcycle and tore down the street, trying to ignore the incessant throbbing of his leg and his racing heart. 

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After calling her mother and repeating House's precise instructions, Sophie closed the phone and leaned back in the passenger seat of Chase's car, a morose expression overtaking her features.

Neither of them had said anything to each other since they'd got in the car.

Sophie kept her emotionless eyes on the road as Chase drove.

"…She's gonna lose the baby," Sophie said, barely above a whisper, her tone completely devoid of any feeling.

Chase glanced at her for a second before turning his attention back to the road.

"You don't know that," Chase said gently.

Sophie frowned, her face full of despair and heartache as the memories of her awful experience from three years ago came flooding back to her.

"…Yes I do," she said in the same soft tone as she turned away from him and gazed absentmindedly out the window.

Chase's wore a forlorn expression as he tried to imagine what Sophie must have gone through when she had her own miscarriage as he stopped at a red light.

"…I can't imagine what you must be feeling right now—" he began in a sympathetic tone, taking his hand off the wheel and reaching out to touch her leg.

"_DON'T_!" she stated angrily, turning her head sharply towards him.

Chase stopped his hand in mid air before he could touch her, his eyes widened in surprise at her exclamation.

"Don't you _DARE_ pretend that everything's ok between us just because we're in the same car," she said menacingly, her eyes blazing.

"…Sophie… I'm… I'm sorry—" he began contritely.

"No you're not," she stated furiously. "You just feel like an asshole because of what Cuddy's going through."

"That's not true. I love you—" he pleaded.

"You didn't stop me. You let me walk up the _FUCKING_ stairs to pack my suitcase so I can get out of your life!" she told him.

"I don't _WANT_ you out of my life. I made a mistake—" he began desperately.

"Yeah? Well so did I," she said coldly.

Chase flinched at her words as if she had just slapped him in the face.

"The light's green," she said without any emotion in her voice, jutting her chin at the windshield.

Chase looked up at the traffic light and turned his attention back to the road, a horrible chill surging through him as he took his foot off the brake and stepped on the gas, realizing that he might have just lost the best thing that had ever happened to him in his life. 

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

The tires on House's motorcycle screeched to a halt as he parked his bike in the back entrance of the Princeton Plainsboro ER.

Breaking practically every traffic law on the way to the hospital, he had called Cuddy's OB/ Gyn, Dr. Steven Sobol as he had stopped at a red light, telling him to meet them in his office.

He limped as quickly as he possibly could through the double sliding glass doors, spotting Nurse Brenda waiting for him with an anxious look on her face.

"Cuddy and Dr. Sobol are already in his office. They're waiting for you," she told him. House nodded and headed for the elevators, without saying a word.

Once he reached the elevators, he pressed the button repeatedly, hoping it would make the door open faster.

He rushed inside as soon as the doors finally opened, ignoring his medical training and instincts as he tried desperately not to think the worst. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------- 

A few moments later, the elevator doors opened on the fourth floor in front of the OB/ Gyn wing.

House raced down the empty hallway, pain surging through his entire right leg as he did so.

He burst open through the door, finding the office empty as well. There was no receptionist and no patients waiting in the chairs.

He headed as quickly as he possibly could to the exam room at the back of Sobol's office, opening the door without knocking.

And then he froze in the doorway.

Cuddy was on the exam table wearing a hospital gown, her feet in the stirrups, scanning the ultrasound monitor extremely nervously as Dr. Sobol was performing a transvaginal ultrasound on her.

Cuddy turned her head towards House.

Her face was pale.

"…Greg…" she said, gravely, her eyes full of fear.

House remained in the doorway with a glazed look, his lips parted ever so slightly.

He then finally entered the room all the way, closing the door softly behind him.

Sobol remained calm as he continued the ultrasound, critically viewing the monitor as he searched for the fetus.

And then he found it.

"…There it is," Sobol said softly, pointing at the image on the ultrasound.

Cuddy snapped her head towards the GE high definition monitor to see the yellow casted image of the fetus inside her.

Her breath became shallow as she frantically looked for a heartbeat or any movement.

But there was none.

Sobol exhaled through his nose as he continued to stare at the image on the screen, thirty years of experience not making what he was about to say any easier.

"… I'm sorry, Lisa," he said in the same soft tone.

TBC…


	36. Chapter 36

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS SO MUCH FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL POSTS!! I RESPONDED TO ALL OF THEM.**

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**CHAPTER 36: Please read and comment.**

Chase and Sophie headed as fast as they could down the hallway of the OB/ Gyn wing to see House slowly exiting Dr. Sobol's office with a dazed expression on his face.

"House!" Chase called out.

House slowly looked up to see Chase and Sophie coming towards him, his hand still on the door handle as he closed the door behind him.

He felt like he was dreaming.

He slowly made his way over to the charge nurse's station in the middle of the hallway.

"House, what happened?" Chase demanded anxiously upon reaching him .

House gazed at him with blank eyes.

"I have to call the OR," House said.

"What happened?" Sophie asked evenly.

House turned his head a little too slowly towards Sophie, noticing that her tone was decidedly calmer than Chase's.

"… I… have to schedule a D & C," he replied.

Chase felt his heart sink into his stomach at House's words.

"She miscarried," Chase said, barely above a whisper.

But Sophie remained completely stoic and silent.

"Oh god. House, I'm so sorry—" Chase continued apologetically.

"Why? Did _YOU_ do it?" House snapped at him.

Chase flinched at House's outburst, pulling back ever so slightly.

Sophie merely rubbed her neck and looked at the linoleum tile beneath her feet.

House stuck his tongue between his lips and limped over to the charge nurse's desk, Chase and Sophie following him close behind.

But as he reached over to pick up the phone, Sophie immediately put her hand over his.

"Don't call the OR," she ordered him.

House looked down at her hand and then back up at her.

"Get your hand off me," he said gruffly, ready to shake it off.

"Dr. Sobol can do a D & C in his office. There's no reason why she has to be wheeled down on a bed to the OR so everyone can stare at her and gossip. She can recover in there, too," Sophie insisted, her voice authoritative.

Chase was genuinely surprised at Sophie's assertiveness with House.

But his eyes almost popped out of his head when House nodded in agreement.

"Go back inside with her," Sophie told him a bit more gently.

House gazed into Sophie's eyes, his own cerulean eyes full of despair and uncertainty.

House then finally took his hand off the phone and went back inside, leaving Chase and Sophie in the hallway.

Sophie sank down on a nearby couch, crossing her legs and folding her arms tightly across her chest. Chase slowly sat down next to her.

They didn't say anything to each other for a few moments.

Sophie stared at some random space on Sobol's office door, while Chase looked down at the floor, his lips pressed together, having no idea what to say to her.

"…You gonna stay here?" he finally asked in a soft voice.

She nodded, saying nothing, still staring at the office door.

"She… might not want to see anyone after the procedure," Chase said gently.

"If she doesn't want to see anyone, then I won't go in," she replied simply.

Chase nodded a bit, growing quiet once again.

"You want me to stay with you?" he offered, turning towards her, hoping that she would at least look in his general direction.

"I don't care what you do," she said without any emotion at all, refusing to turn her head towards him.

"… Sophie, please—" he pleaded, feeling his heart ache.

"If you want to stay for Cuddy, then stay. But _DON'T_ stay for me," she stated flatly, snapping her head around towards him, her eyes blazing.

Chase flinched again, feeling as if she'd slapped him.

"…I'll come back to the house later to pack a few things," she mumbled, turning away from him once more.

Chase felt his bottom lip began to quiver uncontrollably, aware that she had said "_the house_" instead of "_home_."

He bit his lip hard in an effort to control his emotions.

But when she returned her focus back to the door, Chase got up and limped away from her down the hallway, wiping a stray tear brusquely out of his eye as he did so.

She turned to watch him leave, a hollow, empty feeling spreading throughout her chest.

But she didn't cry. 

--------------------------------------------------------- 

Around two hours after Sobol had performed the D & C, Cuddy was still in Sobol's office, having been transferred to another bed.

She was still in a hospital gown, sitting half- way up on the bed, half- listening to Sobol telling her about what to expect of her recovery.

House was sitting on a stool next to her, his chin leaning on his cane, just as silent as she was.

"You can return to work and any other normal activities in a few days. You might even feel good enough to return to non- strenuous activity in 24 hours…" he began.

Cuddy wasn't even looking in his direction.

She was looking absentmindedly out the side window.

It was a beautiful day outside. There was a large maple tree in view, a slight breeze causing the leaves to sway on it's branches.

She'd never really noticed how all the leaves seemed to sway in the same direction all together until that moment.

As if the wind was guiding them in a dance and that every leaf knew all the steps.

"…You might have painful cramping, but it shouldn't last for longer than 24 hours. If you have light cramping and bleeding, that's normal, and it could last up to two weeks. You can take ibuprofen for the pain—" Sobol continued.

"How long until we can try again?" House asked suddenly, his chin still leaning on his cane.

Sobol paused for a moment, slightly surprised by House's question.

He glanced at Cuddy to see her response.

But there was none.

She kept her gaze on the window, losing herself in nature's choreography.

"… You… shouldn't have sex for at least two weeks. Maybe longer if the bleeding continues past that. We'll have to do an ovulation test to confirm—" Sobol began carefully.

"We're not trying again," Cuddy suddenly said, her voice sounding very far away, not turning away from the window.

House snapped his head around to face her, shocked.

He then turned his attention to Sobol, shooting him a pointed look, his eyes begging the other doctor to help him out and tell Cuddy that she was being ridiculous.

"…I'll make your follow up appointment. You'll be discharged in a few hours," was all that Sobol said before leaving the room.

For a few minutes, neither House nor Cuddy said anything.

Cuddy was still gazing out the window.

House turned on the stool to face the bed and leaned closer to her.

"You're just upset right now. Once you're better, we can start trying—" he began.

Cuddy cut him off by lowering the bed and lying on her side, facing away from him, curling up her legs as close to a fetal position as she could do at the moment.

"The fact that you lost the pregnancy is a _GOOD_ thing. It means your body knew what it had to do and it means that you _CAN STILL GET PREGNANT,_" House said insistently.

"Can't you just let me be sad instead of giving me the reality of the situation?" Cuddy asked, her voice quavering.

House drew in a breath and let it out.

"You want to grieve," he stated.

"And you think that's _STUPID_, because I was only at seven weeks and it couldn't have survived outside the womb anyway—" she spat out in disgust.

"I didn't say that," he interrupted softly.

Cuddy let out a curt laugh, refusing to turn to face him.

"I just… don't want you to be upset," he said, his voice gruff once more.

At this, Cuddy slowly turned around to face him, lying on her other side.

"You want to fix it," Cuddy said.

"… Yes," he admitted.

"Well you _CAN'T_," she stated bluntly.

House felt a horrible chill surge through him. His leg throbbed more insistently.

She turned to lie on her back, gazing out the window once more.

"Can you just… leave me alone for a while?" she asked in a meek voice.

He paused, his eyes trailing over her.

He then nodded and left the room. 

---------------------------------------------------------------- 

When House exited Cuddy's room, he found Sophie sitting on the couch in front of Dr. Sobol's office, her elbows leaning on both her knees her head in her hands.

The sound of House closing the door behind him caused her to look up.

"How's she doing?" Sophie asked House.

"She's devastated," he replied, taking a seat next to her on the couch.  Sophie nodded in reply, returning her gaze to the floor.

"I… told her we could try again—" House began.

"She doesn't want to hear that," Sophie interrupted in a raspy voice.

"Is that what the doctor told you after your miscarriage?" House asked.

Sophie turned to look at him, the surprise evident on her face that he was able to deduce that she had a miscarriage.

"You wouldn't have stuck around unless you'd been there," House told her, reading her mind.

Sophie exhaled, leaning back against the couch.

"It was different for me. I didn't even know I was pregnant. I wasn't even trying. It was an accident," she said.

House nodded.

"Where's Chase?" he asked.

"He went—" Sophie began, suddenly stopping herself.

She was about to say "_he went home_."

But then she realized that their home wasn't going to be _HER_ home anymore.

"He left," she corrected herself.

House glanced at her left hand and noticed that her engagement ring was missing.

"Looks like you left, too," he commented.

She didn't answer him.

"What happened?" House asked.

Sophie stared at him, remaining silent.

She then got up from the couch and went into Cuddy's room, leaving House sitting on the bench by himself. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Cuddy was lying on her side when Sophie came in, still staring out the window.

Sophie sat down next to her bed and gave her a melancholy smile, holding out her hand.

Cuddy slowly placed her hand in hers.

"It's ok to cry," Sophie told her, her voice full of love and understanding, squeezing Cuddy's hand back.

And for the first time that day, Cuddy burst into tears.

Sophie immediately climbed onto the bed and held her tight, while Cuddy's body was wracked with her sobs.

House looked through the window and watched Sophie comforting Cuddy, feeling completely helpless and useless as the woman he loved cried her eyes out to his best friend's sister.

After a few moments, he limped down the hallway and took out his cell phone, pressing the speed dial for one of his contacts.

"Dr. Milton," Cate said on the other end after two rings.

"It's House," House said.

"House. To what do I owe the pleasure of a weekend phone call?" Cate said teasingly.

"I'm canceling my sessions," he stated flatly.

At this, Cate laughed out loud.

"Found something else to do on Monday mornings at 8:30? Calisthenics, perhaps?" she quipped.

"Cuddy lost the baby," he said, his voice still devoid of any emotion.

Cate's breath caught in her throat, immediately feeling regret at what she had just said.

"Oh god…I'm… I'm so sorry—" she began.

"The only reason why I was going to you for therapy was to be a better father," House stated bluntly.

"Now that I'm never _GOING_ to be a father, there's no reason for me to be paying three- hundred a session to hear you ask me how I feel about things," he added in the same tone.

"… H- House—" Cate stammered, clearly thrown by House's statement.

He hung up before she could get a word in edgewise.

He held the phone to his lips for a moment.

He then opened it up and pressed another speed dial from his contacts list.

"What's up?" Wilson asked, after picking up on the other end.

"Cuddy lost the baby," House said, his voice cracking at the end of his sentence.

There was silence on the other end for a moment.

"…Where are you?" Wilson finally asked gravely.

"The hospital. She's recovering from a D & C in Sobol's office," House replied, trying to get control of his voice without having much luck.

"I'll be there in ten minutes," Wilson told him before hanging up.

TBC…


	37. Chapter 37

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Less than ten minutes later, Wilson headed down the OB/ Gyn hallway to find House sitting down on the couch outside Dr. Sobol's office. His cane was propped up between his legs and his chin was leaning on it heavily.

House didn't even bother looking up at Wilson once he reached him.

"Where's Cuddy?" Wilson asked.

"Inside," House said, slowly jutting his chin forwards, still focusing on the floor.

"…Why are you out here instead of in there?" he asked, furrowing his brow.

"Sophie's in there," House replied.

"And… you think that Sophie should be comforting Cuddy instead of you?" Wilson asked, becoming even more confused.

"Sophie's been through this. I haven't. How the he11 am I supposed to know what she's feeling?" House muttered.

Wilson felt like he slipped into the twilight zone.

"House… my sister's never had a miscarriage," Wilson said, shaking his head in complete bewilderment.

House raised his eyebrows ever so slightly as he finally turned to face Wilson.

"Well… she seems to _THINK_ she has…" House began.

"… Which means she's either been hallucinating the last two years of her life, or she lied to you, too," he finished.

"What do you mean, '_too_?'" Wilson said, his head spinning by this point.

In spite of himself, House chuckled slightly.

"Seems like Sophie's got a _LOT_ to tell you," he said, focusing on the floor again. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

While Wilson was trying to decipher House's cryptic responses, Sophie was still sitting next to Cuddy in her recovery room in Sobol's office.

"How did you feel when it happened to you?" Cuddy asked her.

"Confused," Sophie admitted.

"I pretty much had a new emotion every five seconds. Sadness… anger… relief…" she said with a weak laugh.

"You were _relieved_?" Cuddy asked, arching her eyebrow.

"I got pregnant by accident, and I was a first year med student. In reality, there was no way I was ready for a baby," Sophie said with a shrug.

"…But part of me was still sad that I didn't get to make that choice on my own. The choice was made FOR me," she added.

Cuddy nodded thoughtfully. "…How'd you get over it?" she asked.

"I didn't. I got _past_ it," Sophie clarified.

"Ok… how'd you do that?" Cuddy asked.

"I threw myself into my work. Spent time with friends and family. Played a lot of poker," Sophie replied.

"Distractions," Cuddy said, understanding her point.

"Yep," she said, nodding in agreement.

"And… it worked. Ranked top of my class that year and I made a lot of bank," Sophie added.

Cuddy let out a half- hearted chuckle. "You think you can help me brush up on my poker skills?" Cuddy said with a weak smile.

Sophie smiled in kind. "Sure," she said.

Cuddy was only able to keep her own smile on her face for a moment longer until another wave of melancholy washed over her.

"… I feel like a failure as a woman," Cuddy confessed, her voice cracking as she spoke.

"I know," Sophie said, placing her hand on top of hers.

"But you're _NOT_," she stated softly, but firmly.

Cuddy pursed her lips together and began to turn her head away from Sophie, tears welling up in her eyes.

But Sophie squeezed her hand hard, forcing Cuddy to look her way again.

"Did you know that when I first met Robbie, I thought he was dating you?" Sophie asked.

Cuddy paused for a moment before laughing out loud at Sophie's question.

"You _DID_?!" Cuddy asked.

"You both came for lunch at O 'Sullivans while you were on that medical conference last October," Sophie reminded her.

"…I remember. He made me order that huge burger," she said.

"You were all dressed up in your suit. You looked amazing… and I thought you were his girlfriend… because I thought it was only natural that a hot guy like Robbie would be dating a beautiful and successful looking woman like you," Sophie admitted.

Despite how devastated she was feeling, Cuddy did feel flattered at Sophie's words.

"Do you have any idea how much I look up to you?" Sophie asked her sincerely.

"You run this entire hospital. You're one of three female Deans of Medicine in the country. You're strong, confident and you maintain your and femininity in a man's world," Sophie continued.

"… I wish that was enough to make me feel better," Cuddy mumbled.

"I didn't say it to make you feel better. I said it to remind you that you're _ANYTHING_ but a failure as a woman," Sophie said.

"…Greg thinks we should try again," Cuddy told her after a thoughtful pause.

"I agree with him," Sophie said without missing a beat.

Cuddy let out a heavy breath. "… I don't know—" she began wearily.

"Lisa, you can still have children and I know you still want to," Sophie interrupted her.

"Look, I know I'm not as good a poker player as you are, but one thing I do know is that you can't lose what you don't put in the middle," Cuddy said flatly.

"True…" Sophie began, trying her best to hold back a smile.

"…But you can't win much either," she added.

Upon hearing this, Cuddy raised her eyebrows.

"Yeah, I saw _'Rounders,_' too," Sophie said, now grinning.

Cuddy and Sophie stared at each other for only a moment before they both started laughing out loud.

As she laughed, Sophie placed her left hand on her chest.

And when she did, Cuddy stopped laughing.

"Where's your engagement ring?" Cuddy suddenly asked her, noticing Sophie's empty ring finger.

At this, Sophie immediately looked down at her hand.

"… I…" she stammered.

But before she could say anything, Wilson entered the room.

"Hey," he said gently, with a sweet smile on of his face.

"Hi," Cuddy replied, matching his smile, a feeling of warmth spreading through her at his presence.

Wilson crossed the room, sat down on the bed and pulled her close for a hug. As she hugged him back, the tears threatened to escape again.

They held each other for a moment. Cuddy buried her face against his shirt, while Wilson gently rubbed her back.

"I'm so sorry," Wilson said sincerely.

Cuddy nodded backed up a bit, wiping her eyes and the bottom of her nose with her fingertips.

"You know, your sister's an incredible young woman," Cuddy said.

Wilson nodded with a smile, knowing that despite what Cuddy was going through, that he needed to talk to Sophie..

"You don't mind if I borrow this incredible young woman for a little while, do you?" he asked in a charming fashion.

"No, not at all," Cuddy said.

Wilson then kissed the top of Cuddy's forehead and he and Sophie left the room.

When they exited Sobol's office, they saw that House was still sitting outside on the same couch.

"House…" Sophie said, causing him to look up.

"…Maybe you should go in there with her," she suggested tentatively.

House gazed at the door to Sobol's office, feeling an overwhelming sensation of dread consume him.

But he didn't get up off the couch.

"…Let's take a walk," Wilson said to Sophie.

Sophie glanced at House, expecting him to stand up and go into Sobol's office.

But when he remained sitting, Wilson jut his chin down the direction of the hallway at her, letting her know to leave House alone. 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Almost ten minutes later, Sophie had told Wilson the entire story about how she'd gotten pregnant accidentally during med school, how she'd had a miscarriage and how her procedure had left her infertile.

Wilson listened in silence, completely stunned.

"…How come you never told me about this?" he finally asked.

"I remember when we were younger, mom and dad were furious when they found out I was playing cards pro…" she began.

"They were ready to lock me up until I was forty, and you defended me. You were even proud of me that I had such skills," she reminded him.

Wilson nodded, smiling a bit at the memory.

"And I remember how proud of me you were when I got into med school…" she continued.

"…I just… didn't want you to be disappointed in me," she mumbled with a shrug.

"You had a miscarriage. Why would I be disappointed in you?" he asked her.

"When I was younger, you were the one who taught me about sex. You drilled into me how important it was to use protection… and the one time I didn't…." she said, trailing off, regret and shame rising inside her.

But she shrugged it off.

"I made mom and dad swear not to tell you," she said.

Wilson nodded in understanding, placing his hand on top of hers on her lap.

As she felt the warmth of her brother's hand on hers, she frowned, her lower lip starting to quiver.

"…You think Debbie would mind if I stayed with you guys for a little while?" Sophie asked in a small voice before she started to sob.

At that moment, Wilson realized that Sophie had no idea that he and Debbie had called off their engagement.

But as he wrapped his arms around her and held her tight while she cried, he decided that now wasn't the right time to tell her. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 

Later that day, Wilson accompanied House and Cuddy back to their home.

Even though she was feeling achy, exhausted and miserable, Cuddy refused any help as she entered the foyer.

"I'm going to change and lie down," she said, heading for the bedroom.

"…You want some help?" House offered gruffly.

"No," she said, the tiredness evident in her voice, shaking her head.

"You want some chamomile tea?" Wilson asked.

House popped his eyebrows up at Wilson.

"Thank you, that'd be nice," she admitted.

Wilson nodded and headed into the kitchen while Cuddy trudged off to the bedroom.

House remained motionless in the hallway, watching the two of them go off in separate directions before eventually joining Wilson in the kitchen.

"You're making _tea_," House stated as Wilson began to fill up the teakettle that Cuddy kept on the stove.

"She wants some," Wilson said.

"She didn't _KNOW_ she wanted some until you offered," House pointed out, taking a seat at his kitchen table.

"Fine. I'm making tea because it's a good excuse for me to stick around in case you feel like doing that talking thing," Wilson said in exasperation.

House watched Wilson turn the stove on to boil the water and open the cabinet above his head to take out an olive green mug.

"So what happened between Sophie and Chase?" House asked.  "They broke up. She's staying with me. Where does Cuddy keep the tea bags?" Wilson asked, looking through Cuddy's other cabinets.

"He broke up with her because she had a miscarriage?" House asked with a grimace.

"SHE broke it off with HIM," Wilson clarified, finally finding a box of chamomile tea in one of the cabinets.

House kept his perplexed expression on his face.

"If you really want to know the rest, ask them," Wilson stated.

"So… does that mean both Wilson weddings are off?" House asked.

Wilson paused and exhaled deeply, having forgotten about his current situation with Debbie during all of this.

"…Yeah, I guess so," Wilson replied.

"So basically, everything sucks," House muttered, staring down at the table top.

"Pretty much," Wilson agreed, nodding his head slowly.

The two men stayed quiet for a moment as Wilson placed a tea bag in the empty mug, waiting for the water to heat up.

"I told Lisa we should try again," House mumbled softly, keeping his eyes on the table.

"You really think that's what she wanted to hear?" Wilson asked, rather surprised at his friend's admission.

"It's what she _NEEDED_ to hear," House replied.

"Maybe in a few months from now. Not the same day she lost the baby," Wilson argued.

House was in no mood to argue at the moment. Instead, he remained silent for a little while longer.

"I cancelled my therapy sessions," he finally said.

Wilson turned his head sharply at House, his eyebrows popping up.

"Figure I could get in touch with my feelings on my own," House added with sarcasm, deflecting his own feelings with expertise.

"Masturbation isn't therapy," Wilson muttered.

"Tell that to six billion people on this planet," House volleyed.

"You weren't only going to therapy because Lisa was pregnant. You have deeper issues," Wilson stated.

"And they're going to _STAY_ deep," House told him with an angry edge to his voice.

"Why?" Wilson demanded.

"_Because the only way that Cuddy is going to get over this is if I forget about my own issues and focus on hers!!_" he blurted out, abruptly getting out of the chair and knocking it over behind him in the process.

Wilson froze.

"You… you're _SERIOUS_?" he asked in shock.

"… Isn't that what you do when you love someone?" House asked, his tone becoming gruff once more.

Wilson felt as if he was waking from a dream.

"The water's boiling," House pointed out, jutting his chin at the teakettle. 

----------------------------------------------------------------- 

Later that night, Wilson padded barefoot towards his front door, wearing pajama pants and a white t- shirt to the sound of persistent knocking.

"House, go home to Cuddy," Wilson declared from the other side of the door before opening it.

But upon opening the door, Wilson was genuinely surprised to see Chase standing on the other side with an incredibly forlorn expression on his face.

"Can I talk to Sophie?" Chase asked.

Wilson hesitated, glancing at the floor uncomfortably.

"I don't know if she's in the mood to talk right now…" Wilson said.

"Let him in," Sophie said, standing a few feet behind her brother.

Wilson turned around to see Sophie behind him, wearing a pair of soft cotton blue pajama pants and a heather grey t- shirt, her hair pulled back in a ponytail.

Her arms were folded across her chest as she stared at Chase with a serene expression.

He immediately noticed that she was still wearing the Tiffany key pendant that he had given to her as a gift when she'd moved in with him.

His heart leaped in his chest, taking it as a hopeful sign.

At this, Wilson backed up to let Chase in. He limped through the entrance to Wilson's apartment, feeling anxious and awkward as he did so.

"… I'll leave you two alone," Wilson said, before retreating to his bedroom.

Chase and Sophie remained standing, staring at each other.

"What do you want?" she finally asked coolly.

"Sophie, you were right," Chase said contritely.

Sophie kept her gaze on him and her arms folded across her chest, a curt little laugh escaped her lips.

"I was right," she repeated sardonically.

"Yes. We can always adopt—" Chase began.

"Oh shut _UP_!" she interrupted him wearily, slapping her hands down in frustration, her entire body slumping in defeat.

"You said it yourself. You don't care about that. All you care about is that I've been lying to you since we met," she said glumly.

"Yes, that was my first reaction…." Chase began, taking a few steps towards her and placing his hand gently on her shoulder.

"Because I was _ANGRY_," he explained gently.

"Just like it was your first reaction that I was just another pretty girl and nothing special?" she mumbled sadly.

"I was angry that you didn't trust me enough to tell me the truth from the beginning," he said.

"If I had told you the truth from the beginning, I'd still be in Boston," she said in a tired voice.

Chase lifted her chin so she'd meet his gaze. Her eyes were filled with a deep sadness that made his heart ache terribly.

"Why do you doubt how much I love you?" he asked sadly, his own eyes reflecting the sadness in hers.

"…I don't know…" she said with a shrug, feeling her emotions well up inside her.

"What can I do to convince you?" he pleaded.

She shook her head, the flood of emotions starting to surface. Tears pooled in the corners of her eyes.

"I don't know," she whispered.

TBC…


	38. Chapter 38

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***************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 38: Please read and comment.**

**TEN DAYS LATER:**

It was an early Tuesday morning when Wilson walked into Cuddy's office, finding her incredibly busy at her desk, as he had the previous week.

Her desk was surrounded by cardboard boxes that had the logo "Noteworthy Invitations" stamped on them.

"Hi," she said with a smile, only momentarily looking up from the pile of papers in front of her.

"… Hi," he replied, gazing at her thoughtfully.

It had been only over a week since her miscarriage and D &C, but Cuddy had returned to work last Wednesday, only taking two days off to heal.

And just like Sophie had done years ago, Cuddy had thrown herself right back into her work, even starting a new project by planning a hospital fundraising event.

Wilson took one of the empty seats facing her desk and picked up a red and blue colored cardstock invitation with bright yellow lettering from one of the cardboard boxes that was next to his chair.

**"YOU ARE CORDIALLY INVITED **

**TO PRINCETON PLAINSBORO TEACHING HOSPITAL'S FIRST ANNUAL BOWL-A- THON FUNDRAISER EVENT **

**SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2009 PRINCETON LANES **

**COCKTAILS, HORS D'OUVERS **

**ALL PROCEEDS TO BENEFIT PPTH PEDIATRICS,"** Wilson read aloud.

"Did you see the posters I had printed to match the invitations?" she asked him excitedly. "I made sure to put them in every wing AND in the cafeteria and the Clinic."

"Yep. I saw them," Wilson replied, his tone decidedly less excited than hers.

"I just got off the phone with a company that can make red and blue bowling shirts with '_PRINCETON PLAINSBORO TEACHING HOSPITAL_' on the back for all the players at a very reasonable price," Cuddy added.

"… That's… great," Wilson said after a concerted pause.

"And I've already contacted many of our biggest donors and they're thrilled to attend," she said with a broad grin.

Wilson only nodded.

"I don't know why I didn't think of this years ago. This'll be so much more fun than a formal event with tuxes and gowns," she went on.

"Oh, and people are already signing up for teams, so make sure you and House do too," she reminded him.

"…You sure you're taking on too much at once?" Wilson asked her carefully.

"No. Why?" Cuddy asked.

"It's only been a week since the miscarriage," he reminded her gently. "Shouldn't you be taking it easy?"

"I'm fine. I'm on Tylenol, the cramping's minimal—" she began with a dismissive wave of her hand, keeping her eyes on her paperwork.

"I don't just mean the physical pain," he clarified.

At this, Cuddy looked up from her desk, meeting his meaningful gaze.

"I'm _FINE_," she insisted.

"Now go tell House that if he doesn't sign up for a team that he's not going to get the chance to show off his mad skills," she added.

Wilson drew in a breath and exhaled in defeat. He then got up from his chair and left her office.

He didn't see Cuddy glance up at him one more time, trying not to think about what he'd told her as he closed her door behind him.

------------------------------------------------------------------

A few moments later, Wilson entered House's private office. House was sitting at his computer, not acknowledging Wilson's presence.

"Cuddy said we have to sign up for a bowling team for this fundraiser thing," Wilson announced.

"Is that your way of asking me out?" House asked, not taking his eyes off the screen.

"Yes. I figured bowling would be a great first date," Wilson snarked as he took a seat on House's leather couch.

"It is unless you make me pay for the shoes," House retorted.

"What do you think about all of this?" Wilson asked him.

"What? Life? The universe? The economic crisis? The twitter phenomenon?" House replied in an obvious attempt to deflect.

"Cuddy," Wilson stated.

House exhaled, but didn't reply.

"Don't you think that she's taking on too much at once?" Wilson pressed.

"So you think it would be better for her to stay at home alone and miserable so she can dwell for hours on end about losing the baby," House said, turning his attention towards him.

"No. I'm just saying she should take it slow—" Wilson began.

"Cuddy doesn't know how to do that," House interrupted.

"She's not dealing with the reality of the situation," Wilson insisted.

House rolled his eyes, not bothering to respond.

"How are _YOU_ dealing with this?" Wilson asked him.

"There's nothing to deal with. This didn't happen to me," House said.

"It was your child, too," Wilson reminded him.

"She lost the baby because it was obviously not viable. Her body did what it was supposed to do," House stated without any emotion in his voice.

At this, Wilson arched an eyebrow at him.

"What?" House demanded in annoyance.

"You didn't say '_fetus_.' You said '_baby_.' In fact, you said it twice," Wilson pointed out.

"Oh gimme a break," House drawled, becoming more irritated.

"This affected you emotionally just as much as it's affected her. You need to grieve, too," Wilson said.

"I'm surprised you don't have a pre- printed brochure on coping with loss in your hip pocket for me," House muttered.

"You wouldn't read it anyway," Wilson shot back.

"I'm _FINE_," House said flatly.

"Yeah. That's what Cuddy said. I don't believe either of you," Wilson asserted.

"How are _YOU_, by the way?" House suddenly said.

"I'm… fine…" Wilson replied hesitantly, confused by the question.

"Really. Your wedding is off. The latest love of your life moved out, and your sister, who also broke off her engagement, moved in," House reminded him.

"Don't you need to grieve too?" House asked sarcastically.

Upon hearing this, Wilson opened his mouth to say something.

"Or is sticking your nose in everyone else's business and forgetting your own crap your coping mechanism?" House demanded before Wilson could get a word in edgewise.

"I…" was all Wilson could say.

"Once your life is perfect, then you can tell other people how to live. But until then, just keep your damn mouth shut," House stated angrily, turning back to his computer.

Feeling like House had just slapped him in the face, Wilson slumped his shoulders and left House's office, feeling just as defeated as he had when he'd left Cuddy a few minutes earlier.

But unlike Cuddy, House didn't watch him leave.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

An hour later, Sophie and House were at the charge nurse's station in the Clinic.

Sophie was searching through the pile of patient files waiting to be seen for a case that House might be remotely interested in while House rooted through the glass jar of lollipops looking for an orange one.

"Hurry up already," House told her impatiently as he finally dug out an orange lollipop from the bottom of the jar.

"Seven week old female with a deep cough and rapid respiration," Sophie read off a chart she had picked out of the pile.

House brusquely took the chart from her and started skimming through it.

"Mother with a sick pre- term seven week old doesn't go to the ER. Brilliant," House muttered.

"Maybe… she should wait for another doctor," Sophie suggested.

"Why? Because Idiot Mom deserves a doctor with a more gentle bedside manner?" House demanded.

"Because according to her information, she's a single parent and doesn't need you to make her feel that it's her fault that her child is sick," Sophie shot back.

"So if I sugarcoat everything, it'll help her be a better parent," House argued bluntly.

Sophie just stared at him, unable to reply.

"Go call her name and tell her to come to Exam Room 1," House ordered her, taking the file with him to the exam room.

---------------------------------------------------------------

A few minutes later, a very young single mother who couldn't have been more than twenty was nervously watching House weigh her seven- week old baby girl on the infant scale.

After weighing her, he expertly took the infant off the scale and handed her back to her mother.

He then glanced over Sophie's shoulder to see the infant's weight since her last check- up.

"She lost some weight. Any vomiting or diarrhea?" House asked.

"No," the mother replied as she watched Sophie take notes in the chart and House take out his stethoscope and place it on his ears.

House listened to her heart and lungs carefully in silence while the young mother felt her anxiety grow exponentially.

"How long has she had the cough?" House asked, taking the stethoscope out of his ears.

"Two days," the mother replied.

"Any fever?" House inquired.

"I don't think so," the mother said, shaking her head.

House raised his eyebrows at this.

"You don't _THINK_ so," House repeated flatly.

Sophie kept quiet in her corner of the exam room, writing down all the necessary information.

"Get me the Thermoscan," House ordered Sophie.

Sophie immediately got up from her chair and rooted through one of the drawers, finding the Thermoscan ear thermometer, placing a plastic, disposable cover on the end of it before handing it to House.

House placed the thermometer in the baby's ear and waited a few seconds before it beeped.

"One hundred and one," House read off the thermometer after a few seconds.

"Is that bad?" the mother asked.

"Considering she's only seven weeks old? Yeah, that's bad," House replied in a nasty tone.

"What's wrong with her??" the mother demanded fearfully.

"She has bronchiolitis. Escort Mother of the Year and the baby down to the NICU," House ordered Sophie.

Sophie froze in her spot, her hand automatically flying up to her Tiffany key charm that she was still wearing around her neck.

"… The _NICU_?" Sophie repeated nervously.

"Just _DO IT!_" House barked at her, thrusting the file at Sophie, causing her to flinch slightly.

"Yes, doctor," Sophie said dutifully, collecting herself.

After Sophie, the mother and her baby left the exam room, House picked up the receiver of the phone that was mounted on the wall, pressing the speed dial for the NICU.

"This is Chase," Chase answered on the other end after two rings.

"Tidy up a bit down there. You're having guests in a few minutes," House told him before hanging up.

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A short while later, Chase, clad in his yellow scrubs and sneakers, exited one of the rooms of the NICU after assessing and giving preliminary treatment to the seven week old preterm infant that House had transferred him.

He limped up to the mother, who was sitting on a cushioned bench just outside the room where her baby was lying in a bassinet, hooked up to a heart monitor and an IV.

Sophie was sitting next to her, her eyes on Chase as he came closer to them.

Chase glanced at her only briefly before taking a seat next to the mother.

"She's doing better," Chase reported.

"Oh thank _god!_" the young mother cried in relief.

"We gave her a whiff of oxygen, we've got her on IV fluids and a bronchodilator, and we're going to keep her here overnight for observation," Chase told the mother.

"I'm a terrible mother. I didn't even think to take her temperature," the mother wailed, placing her head in her hands.

"Don't worry about that now. Let's just see how she does from here," Chase advised her.

"Can I stay with her?" the mother pleaded.

"Of course," Chase replied, nodding.

The mother then got up and immediately went into the NICU and took a seat next to her baby's bassinet, wiping her eyes as she did so.

Chase and Sophie remained on the bench, gazing at each other tentatively.

They hadn't spoken since last Saturday, when Chase had shown up at Wilson's apartment to try to convince her to come back to him.

"…You were great with the mother," Sophie finally said.

"Figured House already insulted her. No reason to do it twice," Chase said gruffly with a shrug of his shoulders.

Sophie nodded.

"…How are you?" Sophie asked him softly after a pause.

"How do you think I am?" Chase replied, his voice full of hurt.

Sophie exhaled slightly, knowing that this wasn't going to be easy.

"How's your ankle?" she asked instead.

"Don't do that," he stated flatly.

"I can't be concerned about you?" she asked defensively.

"No. You can't break up our engagement and move out and then care about me. You can't have it both ways," he shot back.

"Why not? Who made the rules?" she demanded.

"_I DID_," Chase replied sharply.

His words felt like a knife in her heart.

"I never stopped loving you. I never will," she told him sadly.

"And I'll never stop loving you, but I can't spend the rest of our lives trying to convince you of that," Chase replied, forlorn.

"… You didn't even try," she said in a small voice.

"I shouldn't have to," he managed to say, his voice cracking a little as he looked away from her and down at the floor.

Sophie pressed her lips together, willing herself not to cry.

She then leaned over and softly kissed Chase's cheek.

Chase closed his eyes at the gentle feel of her sweet lips on his skin, but didn't turn to face her.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, getting up off the bench.

Chase watched her leave the NICU, not bothering to brush away the tear that slid down his cheek.

TBC…


	39. Chapter 39

**OK, EVERYONE! WE'RE CLOSER TO THE END.**

**I'M THINKING FIVE MORE CHAPTERS AT MOST.**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

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**CHAPTER 39: Please read and comment.**

After Sophie left the NICU area, Chase remained on the bench just outside the NICU room where his seven- week old patient was being treated for bronchiolitis.

He finally wiped the stray tear off his cheek roughly with his fingertips and forced himself off the bench, a surge of pain shooting up his ankle as he did so.

Cursing silently to himself, he limped back into the NICU ward, where the young mother of the newborn was hovering over her child, who was still in her bassinette.

Chase glanced at the monitor, noticing that the baby's vitals were normal and then made the appropriate notation in her chart.

"Fever's down," Chase commented as he wrote.

"I'm the worst mother in the world," the young mother stated flatly.

Chase raised his eyebrows as the woman, who looked incredibly tired and defeated.

"I doubt that," he said in a somewhat reassuring voice, looking back at the chart.

"I didn't even think to take her temperature," she said with a disgusted laugh.

Chase tsked. "She's only seven weeks old. Give yourself a break. You're kinda new at this."

The woman exhaled and nodded, saying nothing else for a moment.

"…I didn't think it was gonna be like this," she finally said.

Chase looked up once more, remaining quiet.

"She was an accident," the mother admitted. "I never wanted to get pregnant."

Thinking of Sophie, Chase felt his stomach turn.

"And when my parents found out, they kicked me out of the house," she added.

"… What about your… the baby's father?" Chase asked delicately.

"He split before she was born," she said with a shrug in a resigned tone.

"Can you imagine your entire life changing because of one stupid mistake?" she asked him.

At that moment, Chase realized that he had no idea what had happened to Sophie after her miscarriage. If she was alone or scared or if anyone had helped her get through it.

"…Yes," he replied softly.

"Dr. Chase?" a familiar female voice said from behind him.

Chase looked up and saw Cuddy standing in the doorway of the NICU.

"Do you have a minute?" she asked him.

"Excuse me," Chase said politely to the mother, who nodded in response.

--------------------------------------------------------------

A few moments later, Chase and Cuddy were sitting on a couch in one of the doctor's lounges down the hall from the NICU.

"How's the patient?" Cuddy asked.

"Better. The fever's already down and she's breathing better. She can probably go home in a day or two," he replied.

"How about the mom?" she asked.

Chase sighed. "Still beating herself up."

"…Yeah, well…" Cuddy trailed off with a slight chuckle, looking down at her lap.

Chase gave her a sympathetic smile, knowing she was blaming herself inside for losing the baby.

"I'm sorry I haven't been by to see you," he said sincerely.

"It's ok. You've been busy," she told him.

Chase nodded, still smiling at her.

But the smile didn't reach his eyes.

"It's ok to ask me how I am, you know," she told him in a joking manner.

Chase couldn't help but laugh at that.

"How are you?" he asked.

"Busy. I've been planning the bowling night fundraiser," she replied, her face brightening a bit.

"Yeah, I saw that," he commented.

"So are you gonna sign up for a team? I hear you're quite the bowler," she coaxed him.

"…I don't think so," he said with a modest smile.

"Why not?" she asked in disappointment.

"Don't think you're allowed to use a cane while you bowl," he said in self deprecation as he lifted up his cane for emphasis.

"House doesn't use his cane while he bowls," she pointed out, a smile tugging at her lips.

Chase chuckled slightly. "Yeah, well, we can't all be as great as House."

This time, it was Cuddy's turn to give Chase a sympathetic smile of her own. She placed her hand on his arm affectionately.

"Sophie misses you," Cuddy confessed.

For some reason, this comment irked him.

"Is that why you're down here? To try to get Sophie and I back together?" he asked with a slight edge to his voice.

"I just wanted to tell you that she misses you," she repeated.

"Yeah? Well I miss her too," Chase stated angrily.

Cuddy kept her eyes fixated on him as his jaw hardened, knowing that he was about to crack.

"Everything reminds me of her. Most of her stuff is still in the condo and I don't want her to come get it because it means that she's really gone. Do you know that I still haven't changed the pillowcases since she's moved out because they smell like her?!" he ranted, gesticulating his arms as he spoke.

"Then why aren't you running after her and begging her to come back?" she demanded.

"Because she _LIED_ to me," he stated, his voice full of hurt.

"Because she didn't think that you'd still feel the same way about her if you knew the truth," Cuddy told him firmly.

Chase's eyes were blazing, his gaze locked on hers.

Having nothing else to say, he finally looked away from her and down at the floor.

"Did she tell you that she went to see Dr. Sobol a few days ago?" Cuddy asked him.

At this, Chase looked up in shock.

He knew that Sobol was Cuddy's OB/ Gyn and that Sophie would have only gone to him if there was a problem.

"No," Chase said, shaking his head, worried. "Is she ok?"

"She wanted to know what her chances were of restoring her fertility if she had the adhesions surgically removed," Cuddy told him.

Chase's felt a lump form in his throat.

"…What did he say?" Chase asked, his lips parted, still stunned at what she had just told him.

"He said… there was no chance," she replied in an apologetic, raspy tone.

Chase felt a horrible feeling surge through his chest.

His entire body sank as he absorbed the news, staring at the floor once more, wishing he could just sink right into it.

"She told me that if he had said '_slim_' instead of '_none_,' that she would've done it in a heartbeat," she added.

Chase's mouth turned down, the ache in his chest intensifying.

"…For me?" he whispered sadly.

"Yeah."

Just then Chase's cell phone rang in the back pocket of his scrubs.

"I'll see you later," Cuddy said, as she got up off the couch.

Chase nodded and opened his phone, not bothering to look at the Caller ID.

"Dr. Chase," Chase muttered into the phone.

"Dr. Chase, this is Dr. Kenneth Eng. How are you?" a friendly male voice said on the other end.

It took a moment for Chase to realize that the man on the other end was the surgeon who had operated on his ankle months ago at NYU hospital.

"I'm… fine. It's… nice to hear from you," Chase managed to say after a moment, surprised to hear from the doctor.

"What's your schedule look like this week?" Eng asked.

"… Not too bad. Why?" Chase asked, confused.

"We're running a Clinical trial that I think you'd be interested in," Eng replied.

"… You… need a doctor from another hospital to help you run a Clinical trial?" Chase asked in bewilderment.

Eng chuckled. "Not a doctor. A _PATIENT_," he clarified.

Chase furrowed his brow, still confused.

"How does tomorrow afternoon sound?" Eng asked.

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**THE NEXT DAY:**

At around four pm the next day, Chase was sitting across from Dr. Eng at his large mahogany desk, reading over the packet that described the specifics of the Clinical trial that Eng had told him about over the phone the day before.

"It's LLLT, or Low Level Laser Therapy. It's similar to laser acupuncture. Basically, we'd use a 'cold laser' with a wavelength between 600 and 1000 nanometers on your ankle. There'd be no sensation or burning on your skin," Eng began.

Chase nodded, still skimming through the papers in front of him.

"The theory is that the laser can penetrate deeply into the tissues to relieve pain. We've seen excellent results in Phase I testing," Eng continued.

"How often would I have to receive treatment?" Chase asked.

"We'd have to base that on the degree of success after your first treatment. In Phase I, some of our patients have been pain free for a month before they needed additional treatment. Others have made it four months without pain," Eng replied.

"What are the side effects?" Chase inquired.

"So far, we haven't seen any adverse reactions to the treatments."

"What's the success rate?"

"Sixty- eight percent," Eng stated.

At this, Chase looked up, his eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Wow," he said, truly impressed.

"Yep," Eng agreed.

"But… if it didn't work…" Chase began tentatively.

"If it didn't work, you'd be no worse off than you are now," Eng interrupted.

"But if it did work… I'd be pain free for an extended period of time," Chase said carefully.

"Yes," Eng agreed.

"And… if I kept returning for treatments…" Chase began.

"Assuming they continued to work, you could possibly be pain free for the rest of your life," Eng said, nodding his head.

Chase stared across the desk at Eng, letting all of the information he'd just received sink in.

Eng stared at him from across the desk, patiently waiting for his response.

"…I have to think about this," Chase finally said.

"Of course," Eng replied.

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Later that same night, Sophie, House and Wilson were at Wilson's apartment.

While Wilson was cleaning up the dishes from dinner, House and Sophie were playing Texas Hold 'Em in the dining room for chips.

Sophie sat across from House at Wilson's dining room table, her arms folded across her chest as House dealt the flop, the first three community cards.

"Check," Sophie stated, not even bothering to check her hole cards for a second time.

House turned down his lower lip, slightly surprised that she didn't bet.

"Fifty," he said, tossing five chips into the middle of the table with a shrug.

Sophie half- heartedly threw in five chips to match his bet, saying nothing.

House then dealt the next card, watching her intently, waiting for her to make her move.

She glanced at the cards and then back up at him.

"Check," she repeated without emotion, her arms still folded across her chest.

House arched his eyebrow.

He then quickly counted out some chips and pushed them into the middle of the pot.

"I raise five hundred," he challenged.

She silently counted out five hundred dollars worth of chips and pushed them into the pot, her facial expression not changing in the least.

"Either you're check raising me to force me to go All In and you've got a monster in the hole, or you're bluffing and you've got rags," House declared knowingly.

"Are you trying to break your record for the most amount of poker terms you can use in one sentence?" she asked him in irritation.

"My personal best is eight," he snarked.

Sophie exhaled loudly. "Just deal the next card."

"No," he stated.

"Why not?" she asked.

"Because it's _NEITHER_," he replied. "You don't give a crap about this game,"

"It's not like we're playing for real money—" she began.

"You _NEVER_ play for money," House pointed out.

By now, Wilson had drifted out of the kitchen and was standing in the doorway, listening to House and Sophie's conversation.

"Well maybe I'm just not in the mood to play," she said with a shrug.

"You're a poker addict. You're _ALWAYS_ in the mood to play," House said.

At this, Sophie looked down at the table and started absentmindedly shuffling a few of her chips between her fingers, a trick she'd mastered over the years.

"…Chase said I don't have the right to care about him because I broke off the engagement," she mumbled.

"He's right," House said.

Sophie looked up in shock.

"You _AGREE_ with him?!" she exclaimed.

"He trusted you. And you broke that trust by lying to him," House replied simply.

"If I had told him the truth, he would've left me in Boston and never looked back!" she said.

"Which means _YOU_ never would've moved in with him, gotten engaged and had your heart broken," he pointed out.

"So you're telling me it's better not to take a risk?! To just play it safe your whole life?!" she demanded, her eyes locking with his, becoming more agitated as she spoke.

Upon hearing this, House looked away and suddenly became incredibly interested in the game again.

He dealt the next card, refusing to answer her.

And a curt laugh escaped Sophie's lips.

"This isn't about me. It's about _YOU_," Sophie stated, almost menacingly.

Wilson was watching the two of them, completely fascinated.

"You and Cuddy took a _RISK_ by getting pregnant. And now that she lost the baby, _YOU'RE_ feeling more hurt than you've ever felt in your entire life and you _HATE_ it," Sophie said, the emotions pouring out in her voice.

"I'm sorry I'm not a masochist like Chase," House snarked.

"No, you're just full of _SHIT_," Sophie spat out.

At this, both House and Wilson's eyebrows popped up.

"You take risks on patients every single day. But when it comes to yourself, you're _PETRIFIED_ to make a move," Sophie told him.

"If I was petrified, I never would've gotten together with Cuddy," House shot back.

"And you haven't had a real conversation with her about the miscarriage since it happened!" Sophie exclaimed.

"That's because she's been too busy with this stupid fundraiser—" House began defensively.

"_BECAUSE YOU THINK IT'S YOUR FAULT THAT SHE LOST THE BABY!_" Sophie yelled out.

House felt his breath catch in his throat.

He was too stunned to speak.

Wilson's jaw dropped, just as stunned.

"House…" Wilson began.

Just then, the doorbell rang.

None of them moved a muscle.

"I'll get it," Sophie whispered, her eyes still fixated on House for a moment before she walked away.

"House… is she right?" Wilson asked him once Sophie went to get the door.

House looked up from the cards and up at Wilson, with deep sadness in his eyes.

But he didn't respond.

-------------------------------------------------------------

Sophie could feel her emotions churning within her, still reeling from the heated conversation she'd just had with House about Cuddy and Chase.

She opened the door forcefully without bothering to ask who it is.

But when she saw Chase on the other side of the door, she gasped.

"Is there somewhere we can talk?" Chase asked her.

--------------------------------------------------------------

A few moments later, Chase and Sophie were sitting outside on the front step of Wilson's apartment building in the warm June night air.

She listened quietly and intently as Chase told her all of the details of the Clinical trial that Dr. Eng had invited him to participate in.

When he finished, he kept his gaze on her, waiting for her response.

It took her a moment to formulate a response.

"…Robbie, that's… _AMAZING_! When do you start?" she finally asked him, her eyes wide.

"I'm not doing it," he stated quietly.

Her mouth gaped open in shock as she felt a horrible sensation go through her chest.

"Are you _CRAZY?!_" she blurted out.

He looked down at the ground in silence, a lock of hair falling in his eyes.

She stared at him, still thinking he was completely insane.

"This is a chance for you to get your life back! You can do everything you used to do! You can get rid of the drugs, the cane, you can even go snowboarding again if you wanted to! Why would you ever even _THINK_ of not doing this?!" she demanded of him.

He looked up from the ground, his eyes shimmering with tears.

"Because there's no reason to get my life back if I can't share that life with you," he replied, his voice choking up as he spoke.

At this, her breath caught.

She stared back at him, her chest rising and falling with shallow breaths as a sensation unlike any other she had ever felt penetrated through her.

"… Robbie…" was all she could manage to say.

"I'm not trying to manipulate you or make you feel guilty…" he began, his voice quavering, taking her hand in his.

Her heart hammered in her chest as he looked deeply into her eyes.

"I'm just… trying to show you—" he said.

"That you love me more than anything," she finished for him, barely able to get the words out.

"Yes," he nodded vigorously.

Her lower lip quivered as he placed both hands on her cheeks and leaned forward, pressing his forehead against hers, closing his eyes.

"…Please come back to me," he begged softly, the tears finally escaping.

"…I don't want to be in pain anymore," he cried.

She nodded against his forehead, feeling her own cheeks becoming wet.

She then reached up to touch his face as she brushed her lips against his.

He passionately kissed her back, completely ignoring the people walking by on the street and the fact that Wilson was standing in the doorway with a grin on his face.

TBC…


	40. Chapter 40

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING AND REVIEWING AND FOR YOUR PATIENCE!!**

**WE'RE ALMOST DONE... :(**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

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**CHAPTER 40: Please read and comment.**

"I'm not trying to manipulate you or make you feel guilty…" Chase began, his voice quavering, taking Sophie's hand in his.

Her heart hammered in her chest as he looked deeply into her eyes.

"I'm just… trying to show you—" he said.

"That you love me more than anything," she finished for him, barely able to get the words out.

"Yes," he nodded vigorously.

Her lower lip quivered as he placed both hands on her cheeks and leaned forward, pressing his forehead against hers, closing his eyes.

"…Please come back to me," he begged softly, the tears finally escaping.

"…I don't want to be in pain anymore," he cried.

She nodded against his forehead, feeling her own cheeks becoming wet.

She then reached up to touch his face as she brushed her lips against his.

He passionately kissed her back, completely ignoring the people walking by on the street and the fact that Wilson was standing in the doorway with a grin on his face.

"Can I take you home?" Chase asked against her lips.

"Please," she whispered.

They reluctantly broke off their kiss and Sophie held Chase's hand as he pushed himself up off the front steps to Wilson's apartment building with the help of his rosewood cane.

As they slowly made their way down the steps and towards Chase's car, neither of them dared to mention that maybe soon, Chase could throw away the cane and never look back.

Wilson was still standing in the doorway, laughing to himself that the two of them hadn't even noticed him and that some of Sophie's belongings were still in his apartment.

Wilson shrugged. "Guess she'll get her stuff another time," he said aloud to no one before going back inside, a broad grin still on his face.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

When Wilson returned to his apartment, House was still sitting at his dining room table, concentrating intently as he shuffled six poker chips in one hand between his fingers.

"I see you've mastered a new skill," Wilson commented.

House briefly looked up at Wilson before focusing back on the chips in his hand, saying nothing.

"Sophie and Chase made up," Wilson said.

"Yeah, I figured since you came back alone," House remarked.

Wilson pulled out a chair next to House at the table, sat down and started to absentmindedly stack chips on top of each other.

"…Is Sophie right?" Wilson finally asked after a considerable silence.

House didn't respond and didn't bother to look up this time.

"Do you blame yourself for the miscarriage?" Wilson pressed.

"…I blame myself for a lot of things," House replied in a gruff voice, unable to look his best friend in the eye.

At that, realization dawned on Wilson.

"It wasn't your fault that Amber died," Wilson said as gently as he could.

"That not how you felt last year," House muttered, still focusing on the table.

"Feelings… change," Wilson said.

"Not for everyone," House said, barely above a whisper.

Wilson gazed at House thoughtfully. He had seen House's pained expression many times before.

But this was the first time that he had seen this vulnerable and exposed.  And he wasn't about to say anything that might make House close himself off.

"…I never should've been in that bar," House said, his voice rough.

"Maybe not, but you can't go back in time. You can only go forward," Wilson said carefully.

"What if I don't want to?" House said in the smallest voice that Wilson had ever heard him use.

"Then you're lying to yourself," Wilson told him.

At this, House finally looked up.

"You never would've gone to Cate or have told Cuddy that you wanted to try to have another baby if you didn't want to move forward," Wilson explained.

"I was trying to snap Cuddy out of the state she was in—" House began.

"You're _SCARED_," Wilson interrupted.

"And that's good," he added.

"Why is that good?" House asked him sadly.

"Because you finally admitted it," Wilson replied.

"Technically, I didn't admit it. You admitted it for me," House pointed out.

"But you didn't disagree," Wilson said.

House kept his gaze on Wilson for a moment longer before giving him a small nod.

And that was enough for Wilson.

"Go home to Cuddy," Wilson told him.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Wilson closed the door after House left, smiling to himself.

He went back to the dining room table and cleaned up the poker chips, putting them back in the little plastic turntable they came in.

He then noticed that Sophie's hole cards were still on the table.

He glanced at the four community cards that House had dealt, which were a Three of Diamonds, an Ace of Hearts, a Seven of Clubs and a Seven of Hearts.

He then turned over Sophie's cards, his eyebrow arching when he saw Sophie's pocket aces.

"She had a Full House," he said aloud to the empty room.

And his smile widened.

He took his cell phone out of his pocket and brought up his list of contacts, scrolling down until he found the one he was looking for.

After hearing the voicemail on the other end, he drew in a breath and prepared himself for the message he was about to leave.

"Debbie, it's James…" he began, pausing and swallowing before continuing.

"I miss you," he stated firmly.

"Call me back," he added before closing the phone.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Chase gazed down at Sophie, his heart hammering as she arched her back underneath him in time with each movement of his hips.

He kept his rhythm slow, his thrusts gentle and deep, his lips parted and his breathing shallow as he drank in the expression of pure ecstasy on her lovely, flushed face.

They had shed their clothing as soon as they'd walked in the door, leaving a trail of shirts, jeans, shoes and underwear behind them.

But now that they were back in their bed, naked and making love, her legs wrapped around his back, their frenetic pace had slowed considerably.

Her eyelashes grazed the tips of her cheekbones as desperate whimpers emanated from her lips with each motion of his pelvis. She gripped his shoulders tightly with her hands while tightening her thighs around him.

He began to make slight circular motions with his hips, giving her delicious friction against her clit, where she craved it most. Her sexy cries intensified at the sensation.

Still thrusting deeply within her, he shifted his weight onto his right side and cupped her breast, grazing her erect nipple with his thumb, knowing it would push her over the edge, wanting nothing more than to give her pleasure she deserved.

Suddenly, her eyes flew open.

"_Ohh!_" she cried softly.

Chase drew in a breath, the shape of his mouth matching hers as he felt her tighten around him, milking him of his much needed release.

He fought the urge to bury his face in her neck and hair as he always did at this moment.

Instead, he kept his gaze locked on hers, their bodies shuddering as waves of pleasure crashed over them, exploding inside her.

"Don't stop…" she begged.

He obeyed her command, thrusting his cock into her even deeper, her moist, velvety walls contracting against his shaft.

She raised her hips to meet his, moaning against his kiss with each movement.

Their rhythm slowed even more so as the intensity subsided, causing them to slip into afterglow. Sophie's eyes fluttered closed, easing back against the bed as electric sensations surged through her.

Chase exhaled hard, finally collapsing onto her body, his cheek leaning against her bare breast. She let out a deep breath as well, pulling him closer to her, lovingly stroking his back.

They lay there together, gradually catching their breath in silence.

Chase lazily brushed his lips against her breast and pert nipple, every so often nuzzling his nose against her soft skin. Sophie caressed his neck and back as he did so.

"I love you, baby," Chase murmured.

Just then, Chase felt Sophie tremble ever so slightly and draw in a quick breath.

Raising his head off her body, he looked up to see her carelessly wipe her eyes.

"Are you ok?" he asked, worriedly.

Sophie laughed a bit in embarrassment.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said.

Chase lifted himself off her and shifted up on the bed, pulling her close to him against his body. She buried her face against his smooth, bare chest and sniffed.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Nothing," she replied, burying her face against his chest. "It was just very intense."

Chase smoothed her hair away from her face and tilted her chin so she would meet his gaze.

"You thought we were never going to be together like this again," Chase said softly as he traced her jawline with his fingertips.

She nodded, lifting her chin a little as she reveled in his touch.

He then took her left hand in his, kissing the inside of her palm.

"Can I give you your ring back?" he asked.

She nodded happily. "Yes."

Chase reached over to the night- stand, opened up the top drawer and grabbed the light blue Tiffany velvet box that had originally came with her ring when they had purchased it in Antigua.

"Will you marry me again?" he asked as he slipped the ring on her finger.

"Yes," she repeated, her entire face smiling, her eyes glassy.

They kissed lovingly and nestled against the pillows once more.

"When do you start the Clinical trial?" Sophie asked, caressing the scruff on his face lightly with her fingertips.

"Eng said I can start next week," Chase replied.

"Do you have to stay in the hospital overnight?" she asked.

"No, but they want me in the hospital for eight hours after the first treatment to chart my progress," he said.

"I'll go with you," she told him.

He grazed his lips against hers once before rolling her over onto her back, carefully lying on top of her.

As they got comfortable, Chase wore a forlorn expression.

"What's wrong?" she asked him, brushing the ever stray lock of hair out of his eyes.

"…The treatment. It's a long shot," Chase said.

"You said the success rate was sixty- eight percent," Sophie reminded him, a little confused.

"Which means the failure rate's thirty- two," he said, his accent thickening just a little as a lump formed in his throat.

Sophie furrowed her brow ever so slightly, not understanding why Chase was suddenly less than optimistic about his chances.

"And even if it works, I'll have to keep going back for follow up treatments—" Chase added.

"Why are you downplaying this?" Sophie asked him.

Chase inhaled, a wave of anxiety spreading through him at what he was about to tell her.

"I know you saw Sobol this week about having surgery to remove the adhesions," Chase confessed as gently as he could.

At this, Sophie felt a pain in her chest.

She pressed her lips together and forced a smile.

"Cuddy told you?" she asked, convincing herself to keep it together.

She had been done crying over this a long time ago and didn't want to start all over again.

Chase nodded, his heart aching for her.

"…Do you think you can get me a consult with the Chief Surgeon?" she asked him.

"Baby…" he replied, shaking his head.

"Maybe Sobol's wrong. Maybe there's a chance—" she began.

"I'm not going to put you through that," he told her gently but firmly.

"But I _want_ to," she insisted.

"Even if there is a slim chance, the surgery's invasive and the recovery's painful," he said.

"I would do it for you in a heartbeat," she said without hesitation.

"I know," he said with a melancholy smile as an overwhelming wave of emotion and love flooded him at her words.

"Which is why I got you another present," he said.

He rolled off her and went into the night- stand drawer once more and took out some papers that he had downloaded and printed off his laptop.

She sat up on the bed, leaning back against the pillow and covered her torso with the blanket as he handed her the papers.

Not having her glasses, she squinted a bit to read the print on the top page.

And then her eyes widened tremendously.

**"FORM I- 800 A: APPLICATION FOR DETERMINATION OF SUITABILITY TO ADOPT A CHILD FROM A CONVENTION COUNTRY."**

"Robbie…" she gasped.

"There's a ton of forms to fill out… the process takes a while," he said.

Her heart quickened as she continued to leaf through the other papers in the stack that he had given her.

And when she read the heading on the fifth page, she stopped.

**"FORM N- 400: APPLICATION FOR NATURALIZATION."**

"You're going to apply for U.S. Citizenship?" she asked in surprise.

"Some countries require that both adoptive parents are American citizens," he explained.

"But won't you automatically become a citizen once we get married?" she asked him.

"It doesn't work that way," he replied, his heart thumping in his chest at what he was about to tell her.

"…I'd… have to go back to Melbourne for a while…" he said in a gruff voice.

Upon hearing this, Sophie stopped browsing through the forms, suddenly understanding the magnitude of his actions.

"You haven't been home since your mother died," she stated in shock.

He nodded, drawing in a breath.

"… Never had a reason to until now," he said, his voice still rough.

Not knowing what else to do, Sophie pulled him close to her, wrapping both her arms and legs around him. He pressed his body tightly against hers, losing himself in her embrace.

"Will you go with me?" he asked her against her shoulder.

"You know I will," she replied.

----------------------------------------------------------------

When House finally got home, he found Cuddy in the living room, completely engrossed in a paperback copy of Firefly Lane, by Kristin Hannah, her legs tucked underneath her.

"New book?" he asked her.

Cuddy looked up from her reading, surprised to see him. She was so involved in the story that she hadn't even heard him come in.

"What are you doing home so early? Sophie clean you out?" she asked jokingly as she flapped the page and put the book down on the couch.

House sat down next to her on the couch, tossing the book onto the coffee table, a grim expression on his face.

Cuddy narrowed her eyes. "You ok?" she asked him.

"It's my fault you lost the baby," he stated bluntly, avoiding her gaze.

Cuddy could have sworn her heart stopped for a moment at his statement.

Frozen, she merely stared at him, at a complete loss for words.

"I hid my therapy sessions with Cate from you… you thought I was having an affair… I challenge your authority as my boss every chance I get… the stress alone could have caused you to miscarry," he continued, his low voice full of regret.

"Greg…" she said, stunned.

"If you had a man in your life who supported you instead of giving you pain, this wouldn't have happened," he continued, barely able to get the words out.

"You don't give me pain," she told him, still incredulous at his confession.

"I've given you pain for twenty years," he said.

She shook her head vehemently. "No you haven't—"

"You deserve someone… who won't make you miserable…" he began, his voice shaking as he spoke.

"Stop it. Stop this _RIGHT NOW_," she interrupted him firmly.

He finally met her eyes, his own filled with anguish and despair.

"This was not your fault," she asserted, grasping both his hands in hers and squeezing them tightly.

He shook his head, about to argue with her.

"And you're _NOT_ leaving me because you're not getting off that easily," she interrupted him before he could say anything.

"…Why would you even want me to stay?" he whispered.

"You really don't know the answer to that?" she asked him.

He merely stared back at her, waiting for her response.

"Because you're the man I love…" she began, taking a breath before continuing.

"… and I want to try again," she told him.

House stared up at her in total shock.

As a reflex, he suppressed the sudden happiness he felt in his heart, refusing to get his hopes up as he had done so many times in his life before.

"What changed your mind?" what all that he said.

"You said it yourself. The fact that I miscarried means that I can get pregnant," she began.

"And if there's still a chance, I'm gonna take it," she finished confidently.

His emotions overwhelming him, his first impulse was to pull her close to him engulf her lips with a passionate kiss.

But the rational side of his mind wouldn't let him.

"This wasn't your first miscarriage. The chances of having another one increase each time," he reminded her.

"I know," she replied.

"And there's at least a thirty percent chance that you won't be able to conceive at all," he continued.

"Which means there's a seventy percent chance that I _WILL_," she argued with a slight smile.

"There's no way that you became this hopeful in twelve days on your own," he said, his need to know her sudden change of heart overtaking him.

She shrugged, her eyes welling up.

"Those odds are a lot better than some women have," she said, her voice cracking.

And then all of the pieces of the puzzle before him fit together.

"Sophie can't have children," he said.

She shook her head. "No, she can't."

Unable to control his feelings any longer, and having no desire to, he finally embraced her and kissed her, his mouth exploring hers with a passion he had never dared to let himself experience.

She wound his arms around his neck, succumbing to his kiss, threading her fingers through his short cropped hair on the back of his neck.

"Sophie and Chase got back together," she breathed against his mouth.

"Don't care," he whispered.

He lowered her down onto the couch, pressing her body against his, his hands trailing down to the outside of her thigh and squeezing it possessively as he pushed his pelvis against hers.

"…I still can't have sex," she gasped as he kissed down her neck, her own arousal intensifying.

"I know," he murmured against her skin.

He then lifted his body off hers, peeled her t- shirt over her head and unhooked her bra. She helped him do the same, tossing his shirt somewhere on the floor.

He moaned as their bodies came together, as if they hadn't held each other in years.

They remained on the couch for the rest of the night, kissing and caressing each other, their bare torsos against each others, falling asleep in each other's arms.

TBC…


	41. Chapter 41

**HI EVERYONE!!**

**SORRY FOR THE LONG WAIT. I'VE BEEN INCREDIBLY BUSY AND INCREDIBLY BLOCKED. :(**

**BUT I THINK I FINALLY GOT IT TOGETHER.**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

************************************************************* **

**CHAPTER 41: Please read and comment.**

**NEXT TUESDAY:**

Wilson was sitting in the hospital cafeteria, reading the New York Times, about to take a bite of the turkey club he had ordered for lunch when he heard a familiar female voice:

"Mind if I sit?" the voice asked hesitantly.

Wilson looked up from the paper and saw Debbie standing in front of him.

His mouth still open slightly, he placed his sandwich down on the plate.

"Of course not. Please," he said, gesturing with his hand to offer her the empty seat across from him.

Debbie sat down and folded her hands on the table top, meeting his deep, sparkling brown eyes across the table. She inhaled slightly through her nose at the sight of his bright, hopeful smile.

"…I got your message Saturday night. I'm sorry I didn't call you back," she apologized.

"That's all right. I'm sure you were busy—" he began good- naturedly.

"I wasn't," she interrupted.

At this, Wilson fell silent.

She pressed her lips together while he waited for her patiently to continue.

"You were right," she stated.

Wilson raised his eyebrow a bit.

"I shouldn't care what you family thinks about us, and I shouldn't be so hung up on how and when we would get married," Debbie explained.

Wilson smiled broadly, feeling as if a giant weight had been lifted from his heart. He began to reach across the table to take her hand in his.

"But I _am_," she continued.

His smile immediately faded.

He stared back at her, not believing at first that he had heard her correctly.

Wearing a contrite expression, she reached across the table and placed her own hand on top of his.

"James, you're a wonderful man… but we're at different points in our lives," she began.

"And what's important to me isn't what's important to you," she continued.

She then took her hand off of his, reached into the pocket of her tailored suit jacket and produced a velvet black box, placing it in front of him on the tabletop.

Wilson stared down at the box in silence.

"I'm sorry," she said.

He watched her leave the table and walk out of the cafeteria.

She never looked back.

Once again, Wilson stared down at the ring box.

After a few moments, he finally opened it and gazed at the sparkling two- carat square cut diamond he had given to her several months ago, running his hand slowly over his mouth.

And with that, he snapped the box shut, shoved it into the right inside breast pocket of his suit, got up from the table and threw out his sandwich before leaving the cafeteria.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

A few minutes later, Wilson pushed open the glass door to House's private office. House was sitting at his desk, signing off on a chart.

"Well, it's over," Wilson declared flatly as he plopped down onto the lounge chair in the corner of House's office.

House glanced up at Wilson briefly before returning his focus back to the chart he was signing.

"If you mean things between you and Debbie, I don't know if you've noticed, but they've been over for a while," House remarked.

"Well now it's official," Wilson said, digging into the inside pocket of his suit.

House looked up again just in time to see a small dark object flying towards him. His eyes widened as he quickly held up both his hands, catching what Wilson had just tossed at him from across the room.

Once he caught it, House paused for a moment before opening the box and seeing the engagement ring nestled inside it.

He looked up at Wilson once more, who looked positively miserable.

"What did she say?" House asked.

"She said that we want different things, and what's important to me isn't what's important to her," Wilson replied, disgusted.

House nodded. "Is she right?" he asked.

Wilson exhaled deeply through his nose, his entire body seeming to slump with the effort.

"…Yeah," he admitted begrudgingly.

"Then she did you a favor," House replied simply.

Wilson blinked slowly. "Somehow, that doesn't comfort me," he said dejectedly.

House arched his eyebrow ever so slightly, the corner of his mouth turning up as he did so.

"Did she break up with you in the cafeteria?" House asked.

"Yeah, why?" Wilson asked, confused by the question.

House then opened up his right hand desk drawer, took out a very fat manila envelope and crossed the room to Wilson.

"Because that means Sophie won the pool," House reminded him, handing him the envelope.

At first, Wilson's brow furrowed, not having any idea what House was talking about.

And then, a look of stunned realization appeared on his face as he recalled that he, Debbie and Sophie had rigged Chase and House's betting pool on his impending marriage.

Wilson quickly fumbled with the metal clasp of the envelope and opened it, his jaw dropping slightly when he saw that it was stuffed with what seemed to be tens of thousands of dollars in cash.

"And since Sophie was gonna give you the take anyway…" House trailed off in a leading tone.

Wilson looked up at House, his mouth still gaped open, to see House smirking at him.

"Did you eat yet?" Wilson asked him.

"Nope," House replied, his bright blue eyes twinkling.

"...Feel like letting me buy you a Reuben in the cafeteria?" Wilson offered.

"Screw that. If you're buying, let's go to Ruth's Chris and get a steak," House stated, tossing the ring box back to Wilson.

Wilson deftly caught the ring box and got up from House's lounge chair.

And then he smiled.

"Sounds good to me," Wilson agreed with a shrug.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

At around the same time, Sophie was waiting in a nearby lounge at NYU hospital, playing Texas Hold 'Em on her cell phone.

Chase had been in an exam room for almost two hours, receiving his first round of cold laser therapy as part of the Clinical trial he had chosen to participate in.

She pushed a button to go All In on the hand she had, a voice interrupted her game play.

"Are you up or down?" Chase asked.

Sophie looked up from her cell phone and saw Chase standing in the lounge, wearing a set of light blue scrubs and socks with treads on them that the nurse had given him to change into with a lopsided grin on his face.

His cane was nowhere in sight.

"… Down," she said, staring at him with baited breath and a hopeful expression on her face.

Chase glanced down at his feet and then back up at her.

"Like my socks?" he asked, wiggling his toes on both feet, still standing there with the same jaunty smile.

She nodded, her heart thumping in her chest.

He then walked towards her, his smile widening slowly.

Sophie gasped as he came closer to her, immediately noticing that he was no longer limping.

"You don't think you'd be too embarrassed to take a long walk with me around this hospital while I'm wearing these socks?" he asked her.

By now, Sophie's entire face was smiling.

He pulled her into an embrace, holding her tight, his own smile never leaving his face. She wrapped her arms around his neck, laughing out loud, her heart filled with more joy she had ever felt in her life.

"Not at all," she told him.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

After quite a few long walks around the hospital, Dr. Eng cleared Chase to leave after the allotted eight hours he was required to stay after his first treatment, sending him home with a journal for him to record any and all side effects that he experienced for one week after treatment.

But at the moment, Chase wasn't looking at it.

He and Sophie were sitting at an outdoor table at Jackson Hole Restaurant in the Murray Hill area of Manhattan, thoroughly enjoying the warm, June evening air and their 7 oz. burgers loaded with lettuce, tomato and red onions, side orders of fries and bottles of Heineken.

"Snowboarding," Chase told her in between bites.

Sophie wiped her mouth with her napkin and immediately wrote down "_SNOWBOARDING_" on another paper napkin that she had set aside.

"Ok," she said, nodding as she wrote.

"Long walks on the beach," he said.

"You really want me to write that?" she asked with a laugh.

"Definitely," he replied, his eyes sparkling as he took a swig of his beer.

She grinned and continued to write.

"Boardwalk and surfing on the Jersey Shore…" he suggested.

"But I don't know how to surf," she told him coyly.

"I'll teach you," he told her, matching her flirtatious tone.

Sophie waggled her eyebrows as she popped a French fry in her mouth and returned her attention back to her list.

"Every museum in Manhattan… jogging together on campus…"

"You want to go running with me?" she asked, a bit incredulous.

Chase snapped his fingers, suddenly getting another idea.

"We can take ballroom dancing lessons for our wedding!" he said with excitement.

Sophie couldn't help but laugh.

"What?" Chase asked.

"Well, besides the fact that you actually want to take dance lessons, don't you think you should take it slow? See how the treatment works before we do all this?" she asked him.

"No," Chase declared, shaking his head.

Sophie gave him a sweet, yet tentative smile.

"Robbie…" she began gently.

Chase interrupted her by taking the pen out of her hand, placing it on the table and then taking both her hands in his.

"How long have we been together?" he asked her, gazing into her eyes.

"Eight months," she replied.

"And for seven out of those eight months, we haven't been really able to enjoy our lives together because I've been in pain," he said.

"Baby, that's not true—" she protested.

"I've been a jerk to you," he stated.

Sophie pressed her lips together and shook her head. "No you haven't."

"We've gotten into awful fights… we broke up twice… I've lost my patience and my temper countless times… all because of my ankle," he said, his voice full of regret.

Sophie chuckled. "You have a very selective memory," she told him.

"No I don't," he said somberly.

"You can't tell me that I've never done anything wrong," she said. "I've screwed up plenty of times."

"But I know that I never would have treated you the way I did if I hadn't been in pain," he insisted.

Sophie wore a sad smile on her face as he caressed the top of her hand with his thumb.

"I want to be the man you fell in love with back in October in Boston," he said softly.

"You are," she told him.

"And I want to do all of the things with you that seven months ago I thought I'd never be able to do," he added.

Knowing how important this was to him, she moved her chair closer to him, sat down once more and placed both her hands on his cheeks, kissing his lips softly.

He brushed his lips with hers, feeling like he was kissing her for the first time.

"What else should I put on the list?" she asked him as they kissed.

"Bowling together at Cuddy's fundraiser thing," he murmured against her mouth.

"You should know that I'm a terrible bowler," she said, still kissing him.

Chase smiled against her lips.

"I could show you a few things…" he said suggestively.

"I bet you could," she replied, matching his smile.

------------------------------------------------------------------

At around the same time back in Princeton, Cuddy was in her office, pouring over a pile of papers when her phone rang on her desk.

She glanced at the caller ID, recognizing her own home phone number on the display.

"What's up?" she asked, cradling the phone against her shoulder as she continued to sift through the paper work.

"I'm hungry. When are you coming home?" House asked on the other end.

"Order something. I've got some more things to finish here," she told him.

"Don't want pizza, Mexican or Chinese and those are the only menus we have," House replied.

"So order Thai from that place you like near campus," she told him.

"I forgot the number," he said.

Cuddy snorted in exasperation as she did a Google search on her desktop computer for the Thai restaurant.

"Here. It's 555- 2391. Call and tell them to deliver so you don't have to get off the couch until they show up with the food," she said, reading the number off her monitor.

"I don't have a pen to write down the number," he told her.

Cuddy exhaled, leaned back in her chair and placed her legs on top of her desk, crossing them at the ankles.

"Is this your roundabout, manipulative way of telling me to order you something for dinner?" she asked him, pretending to be more annoyed than she really was as a smile tugged at her lips.

"Beed Pad Thai is my favorite," he replied, smiling on the other end.

"Oh, and get something for yourself, too," he added.

A curt laugh escaped her lips. "You're lucky I love you as much as I do," she declared.

"_I know_," he replied sincerely.

Upon hearing this, Cuddy's breath caught in her throat, completely caught off guard by House's two simple words.

"Come home soon," he told her in a low, soft voice before hanging up.

Still a bit stunned, Cuddy eventually hung up the phone.

She then scrolled through the Thai menu on the screen in front of her and picked up her phone again to order them both dinner.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Twenty minutes later, Cuddy entered her home carrying a bag from Da's Thai Café.

"Greg?" she called out to him as she shut the door behind her.

"In the living room," he called back.

"I got the food. Do we have any wine?" she asked him as she got closer to the living room.

But she stopped abruptly as soon as she entered the dimly lit room.

House was sitting on the floor, wearing his red dragon t- shirt, a pair of jeans and socks, leaning his back against the base of the couch. He had moved the coffee table aside, having placed a few lit votive candles on its surface.

In the table's place, he had spread out a large, thin quilt on the floor.

On the quilt were paper plates, an opened bottle of white wine and glasses.

"… Looks like we had some wine…" she managed to say, stunned at the scene in front of her.

"Yep," he replied, his eyes sparkling from the candlelight as he looked up at her, tracing her figure with his gaze.

She could feel butterflies flitting around in her stomach at the way he was looking at her.

House patted a space on the quilt next to him, indicating for her to sit down. She smiled and toed off her heels, joining him on the quilt.

"Remember the last time I set the floor for dinner?" he asked her as he poured her a glass of wine.

Cuddy laughed. "I remember the last time you set the _table_. Eight months ago when we first got together."

"Right after your one- night stand with Chase in Boston," he said, handing her the glass.

Cuddy wore a bewildered look as she took the glass from him.

"Why would you point that out?" she asked.

"Because you could have easily gotten into a relationship with him after that night, but you didn't," he replied.

She stared at him, still unsure why he would bother to state this to her.

"Instead of choosing the handsome, sensitive caring guy that every woman would love to take home to their family, you picked the miserable, misanthropic callous jerk," he continued, pouring himself a glass of wine from the bottle.

"Are you saying you want to meet my family?" she quipped, taking a sip of wine from her own glass.

He watched her finish her sip and then took her glass from her, so she would pay complete attention to what he was about to tell her.

He then met her eyes, his own filled with intensity and sincerity.

"I'm saying that when you made that choice I became the _luckiest miserable misanthropic callous jerk in the world_," he said.

For the second time that night, her breath caught at his words.

Their gazes still locked on each other, Cuddy caressed the scruff on his face.

"Are you still miserable?" she asked him barely above a whisper.

His eyes dancing, he leaned forward and brushed her lips softly with his.

"No," he whispered back.

TBC…


	42. Chapter 42

**HI EVERYONE!**

**OK, MY WRITER'S BLOCK IS GONE. :D :D :D**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER...**

**WITH A FEW TWISTS AND TURNS.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-)   
*************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 42: Please read and comment.**

The next morning, Chase and Sophie walked into the Campus Coffee Shop, holding hands. Chase glanced at his watch as they moved closer to the line that led to the register.

"We've got time. You want to sit for a bit? We could get a pastry or something," Chase suggested.

"No way. I've gotta fit into a wedding dress in three months. No pastries," Sophie declared.  "C'mon. We'll split it. I'll take the bigger half," Chase coaxed her.

Sophie peered into the glass display case, her eyebrows rising ever so slightly at the sight of the fresh cranberry bliss bars that were tempting her from the inside.

"You know you want it," Chase said seductively.

Sophie chuckled. "All right," she acquiesced.

As they waited on the line, Chase, standing behind Sophie, wrapped his arms around her. Sophie leaned her head back against his chest and smiled.

"You were great last night," he murmured into her ear in a husky tone as he reached down to give her ass a squeeze over the tight black pants she was wearing that day.

"Robbie!" she hissed quietly, jumping slightly at the feeling of his hand on her ass, remembering the passionate sex they had last night in the shower and then in their bed, after returning home from Manhattan.

"What? Nobody heard me," Chase said, feigning innocence.

"That's not what I was worried about," she said, fighting a grin.

Chase waggled his eyebrows. "Can you blame me for not being able to keep my hands off you?" he asked, nuzzling his face in her hair.

Sophie giggled, her entire body tingling at how affectionate he was being towards her in public.

"Too bad I'm spending the day with House today in the Clinic. We could've snuck off for a quickie," she joked.

Chase turned down his lower lip and shrugged.

"… I know a place where we could meet—" he began.

"I'm not meeting you in the janitor's closet," she interrupted.

Chase's eyes widened. "How did you—"

"Must've been embarrassing when House caught you in there with your shirt off," she quipped.

Chase felt a deep flush creep up his face. He raked his hands through his hair, while Sophie grinned, thoroughly enjoying his embarrassment.

She then moved closer to his ear.

"… The sleep lab, however, isn't out of the question…" she whispered.

At this, Chase backed up a bit, his eyebrow arched in extreme interest.

"Really?"

Sophie shrugged playfully and turned around to face the direction of the line once more, never answering his question.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

A few minutes later, Chase and Sophie had found a table. Chase had cut the cranberry bliss bar he had purchased for them in half and was sipping his coffee.

"I really shouldn't be eating this. My dress fitting's tonight," Sophie said, cutting off an even smaller piece of the pastry with a plastic knife.

"Oh stop it," Chase chided her.

"I won't be home 'till late. What are you gonna do about dinner?" she asked, taking a bite of the cranberry bar.

"I'll figure it out," he said dismissively.

"…I guess we should start looking for invitations soon," she said as casually as she could, washing down the sweet pastry with a sip of her iced vanilla latte.

"I guess so," he agreed with a soft smile.

"…This isn't freaking you out, is it?" she asked tentatively.

"Why would it?" he asked, confused.

"Most guys freak out when the chick starts in on the wedding plans," she replied with a little laugh.

"Well, I'm not most guys," he said simply.

He then reached across the table, taking her hand in his.

"Do you remember what you promised me?" he asked her.

She shook her head, "No…" she said, confused.

"You promised me that you'd buy something innocent to wear under your dress," he reminded her softly.

Sophie felt her heartbeat quicken at the passionate, yet quiet way he was gazing at her.

"…Ok," she whispered.

Chase leaned in closer to her around the table and brushed his lips delicately against hers. She succumbed to his soft kiss, a haze sweeping over her.

Just then, Chase's cell phone rang in the pocket of his jeans, breaking the intimate moment between them.

Chase sighed, breaking off their kiss in disappointment.

"Could be the hospital," he mumbled, digging in his pocket for his phone.

"This is Chase," he said, after reading "PRIVATE CALLER" on the caller ID display.

"Hey!" Cameron said on the other end.

Chase was caught off guard at first upon hearing her voice.

"… Hi!" he finally said.

"So? Don't keep me in suspense. How did the LLLT go?" she asked him.

"…It went great," he replied, still a bit surprised that Cameron was calling him.

"You're completely pain free?" she asked excitedly.

Chase smiled. "Yep."

"That's wonderful! I'm so happy for you!" she gushed.

"Thank you," he said to Cameron, giving Sophie an apologetic, yet awkward glance as he shifted his position in his chair to turn towards her.

Sophie waited politely for Chase to finish his conversation, knowing exactly who was on the other end based on Chase's mannerisms and tone of voice.

"So where are you now?" Chase asked Cameron.

"Barcelona. It's so beautiful here," Cameron said dreamily.

"Things good with Sebastian?" he asked.

"_VERY_ good," Cameron replied in a leading tone, a huge grin forming on her face on the other end.

Chase popped his eyebrows.

"Something you want to tell me?" he asked.

Cameron drew in a breath, her excitement almost bubbing over.

"I'm—" she began.

***BEEP***

Chase clicked his tongue in annoyance at the call waiting interruption.

"Hang on a minute. I've got another call," he said, pressing the SEND button on his phone to switch lines. "This is Chase."

"Chase, I need you to come into my office for a few minutes before you head down to the NICU today," Cuddy said on the other end.

"Is something wrong?" Chase asked.

"No, I just need to talk to you about a few things," she replied.

"Ok. I'll be there in a few minutes," he told her.

"Ok," Cuddy replied, hanging up.

Sophie furrowed her brow, curious who had just called Chase.

"Cameron, I've gotta go. Can I call you later?" Chase asked her after switching back to her on his cell.

"… Ok," Cameron said after a considerable pause.

"Bye," he said quickly, snapping his phone shut.

"Cuddy wants to see me," Chase told her, grabbing his coffee and standing up from the table.

"You in trouble?" Sophie asked with concern, forgetting about Cameron's call.

"Dunno," Chase replied, placing the cranberry bliss bar in the small paper bag the clerk had given to him as they both got up from the table with their coffees.

"You should've asked Cuddy if she wanted you to bring your leather stethoscope," she snarked.

"Do you and House make fun of me all day in the Clinic?" he asked, pretending to be insulted.

"Pretty much," she grinned.

"You're gonna get punished, little girl," he teased.

"Ooh. I hope so," she replied, sexily.

He smiled broadly as he took her hand in his, leading her to the door.

But as they reached the door, they suddenly saw Danny entering the coffee shop at the same time, causing all three of them to stop in their tracks.

Danny was visibly caught off guard when he saw them, his heart skipping a beat at the sight of Sophie.

The last time he had seen her, she had come over to his apartment to play cards. He had attempted to kiss her when he had walked her to her car.

But his jaw dropped when he saw that Chase didn't have his cane anymore.

"Hi Dan," Sophie said with a serene smile, knowing what he was thinking.

"Bye Dan," Chase said in a perfunctory way, a smirk on his lips as he led Sophie out the door.

Dan could only watch them leave, still stunned.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

A short time later, Chase entered Cuddy's office. Her entire face lit up upon seeing him.

"You look great!" Cuddy exclaimed, getting up from her chair and walking over to him.

"I _feel_ great," he told her, his smile matching hers as she engulfed him in a hug.

"So how was the treatment?" she asked, leading him over to her desk.

"It took almost two hours, but it was definitely worth it," he replied, taking one of the empty seats in front of her desk.

"So are you gonna sign up for my bowling event now or do I have to threaten you?" she asked him coyly, folding her hands together on her desk.

"I'll sign up," he asked, laughing, remembering Sophie's earlier leather stethoscope remark.

Cuddy grinned and wrote Chase's name down on a nearby clipboard that she was keeping for the teams for the bowling event she had organized.

"That's… not what you wanted to talk to me about, is it?" he asked her.

After jotting down his name, she put the pen down and faced him squarely once again.

"How would you feel about getting your old job back in the OR?" she asked him.

Chase raised his eyebrows, truly surprised by her question.

"The treatment worked so now you can stand for long periods of time… Cohen said you were a real asset to the surgical team—" she began.

"Cohen's an egomaniac. He didn't say anything like that about me," Chase interrupted her, suddenly understanding her motives.

"_House_ told you he wants me back in the OR," he stated.

Cuddy couldn't help but smile at how fast Chase had figured her out.

"He trusts you," Cuddy said.

"No, he _NEEDS_ me because he knows that I'll do whatever crazy procedure he wants done," he argued.

"He also _TRUSTS_ you," she repeated.

Chase exhaled, leaning back in his chair.

"I have to be honest with you. I'm really happy in the NICU," he told her.

"You trying to negotiate a raise? Better benefits?" she asked, her lips turning up at the corners.

Chase shook his head. "No," he replied sincerely.

"I know House needs me in there… but I can't do what makes him happy," he admitted.

Cuddy leaned forward, resting her elbows on the desk.

"I'll give you three more weeks vacation," she offered.

"Sorry," he told her, shaking his head again.

"You know, I can always just reassign you back to the OR, and then you wouldn't have a choice," she told him.

Chase leaned forward on the other side of the desk, a glint in his eyes.

"But you're not gonna do that," he told her, his eyes locking on hers.

"Give me one reason why I shouldn't," she challenged him lightly.

"I gave you _TWO_ reasons last October in Boston," he countered without missing a beat.

Cuddy's mouth gaped open.

Then she promptly closed it, her face turning beet red as memories of their one- night stand came flooding back to her, including the two mind blowing orgasms Chase had given her that night.

A sly smile crept across his face as he watched her blush.

"Fine. You can stay in the NICU," she acquiesced, regaining her composure.

Chase grinned and began to get up off his chair.

"But you have to do something for _ME_," she said, before he could fully stand up.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

A little while later, House and Sophie were standing near the charge nurse's station in the Clinic, perusing over the pile of waiting charts when Chase came up to them, holding a manila envelope.

"You got a minute?" Chase asked House.

House glanced at Chase, giving him a quick once over, noticing the absence of his cane and the fact that he didn't appear to be favoring one leg anymore.

"Chase, I already told you. If you want the girl-on-girl stripper package for your bachelor party, it's gonna cost extra," House said.

"You're gonna make him pay for his _OWN_ bachelor party?" Sophie asked.

"… That's what you object to?" House asked her.

Chase smiled smugly at Sophie's response as she turned back to the pile of charts, continuing to search for an interesting case that House would actually accept.

"We need to talk," Chase said, directing his attention back to House, motioning with his head to a nearby empty exam room.

House met Chase's insistent stare once more.

"Guy stuff. Probably wants to show me a rash on his scrotum or something," House told Sophie before leaving her at the nurse's station.

Sophie shook her head and laughed as they went into the exam room.

------------------------------------------------------------------

"So what's so secretive that you had to drag me into an exam room away from your fiancée?" House asked Chase once he had closed the door behind him.

"Thought you might be interested in this," Chase said, handing House the manila envelope he had been holding.

House eyed Chase and the envelope suspiciously, pausing before finally taking the envelope and opening it.

Chase waited in anticipation as House read the papers in front of him, his eyes widening ever so slightly as he did so.

"The Clinical Trial is accepting people from age 25- 55, so you qualify," Chase told him.

"Barely," House muttered.

"The treatment's tedious, but completely painless," Chase went on.

"And while you were under the cold laser, you thought of _ME_ and asked Dr. Eng for another copy of the application," House stated in complete disbelief, meeting his eyes.

Chase faltered for a moment, having no idea how to respond.

"See it _ALMOST_ worked, but there's a time and date stamp with Cuddy's name on the bottom of the page, which means that she downloaded these forms off the Interweb," House began.

"Which means this was _HER_ idea and she got _YOU_ to be the messenger boy," he finished.

"She loves you. She doesn't want you to be in pain anymore," Chase said sincerely.

"Well here's a news flash. I don't want to be in pain either," House declared.

"But you're afraid to try the treatment, because you're afraid it's not going to work," Chase said, refusing to be daunted by House's brusque demeanor.

House kept his eyes on Chase only for another moment before looking down at the floor.

"I called Eng. There's a spot available if you want it," Chase told him before exiting the exam room, leaving House alone with the papers.

TBC…


	43. Chapter 43

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**BIG TWIST IN THIS ONE!**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

*************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 43: Please read and comment.**

"She loves you. She doesn't want you to be in pain anymore," Chase said to House sincerely.

"Well here's a news flash. I don't want to be in pain either," House declared.

"But you're afraid to try the treatment, because you're afraid it's not going to work," Chase said, refusing to be daunted by House's brusque demeanor.

House kept his eyes on Chase only for another moment before looking down at the floor.

"I called Eng. There's a spot available if you want it," Chase told him before exiting the exam room, leaving House alone with the papers.

----------------------------------------------------------------

A few short moments later, House pushed the door open to Cuddy's office, holding the manila envelope that Chase had given him.

"See you made good use of your boy- toy," House said to her, holding up the envelope for emphasis.

"He's not my boy- toy," Cuddy said, not looking up from the work she was immersed in at her desk.

"_FORMER_ boy- toy. Forgive me," House said sarcastically.

"Chase had the treatment. It worked. I just thought that since he had experienced it first hand that it would be better to get his opinion than mine," Cuddy explained.

House stared at her blankly for only a few seconds.

"What a complete load of _CRAP_," he stated bluntly, causing Cuddy to snort in exasperation and toss her pen aside.

"You either didn't want to come across as the insanely annoying nagging girlfriend or you wanted to avoid an argument because you _KNEW_ that I'd reject the treatment," House added.

"Ever think there could be a third option?" she demanded lightly.

House turned down his lower lip, pretending to think it over.

"You like watching Chase from behind as he walks away from you in a pair of jeans?" he asked.

Cuddy sighed, got up from her desk, led House over to the leather couch against the wall of her office and sat down with him.

"I don't want you to be in pain," she explained as if she was talking to a small child.

"You're acting like this is a miracle cure. It's _NOT_," he told her.

"Chase has been in pain for seven months. Now after one treatment, he isn't!" Cuddy said.

"Seven months of pain isn't ten _years_ of pain. And the trauma to his ankle wasn't as extensive as the damage to my leg," House argued.

"I know you're scared," Cuddy said a bit more gently, placing her hand on his leg.

"But you're the one who said that you wanted to try to have another baby," she reminded him.

At this, he averted his eyes away from her penetrating gaze.

"Wouldn't you like to be able to run after your own child in the park, or take him for walks, or play sports with him?" she continued.

"Calling it a '_he_' was a nice touch," he snarked.

Cuddy smiled a bit. "Manipulation works."

He chuckled ever so slightly, still looking down at his lap.

"What if the treatment doesn't work?" he asked gruffly.

"You could at least say that you tried," she replied.

"Saying 'you tried' and failing doesn't change the fact that you still failed," he said flatly.

For a moment, Cuddy was thrown by his blunt, fatalist response.

But she quickly regrouped.

"Is that what you're going to tell our child when his little league baseball team doesn't win the game?" she countered.

"Now our fictitious male child plays little league? What else does he do? Is he valedictorian of his elementary school?" he quipped.

"Call Eng. Sign up for the treatment," she told him in her own gentle, yet firm way.

House gazed into her soft, yet sad lovely blue- grey eyes for a minute longer.

He then got up off the couch and left the office without saying another word.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

While House and Cuddy were talking in her office, Chase and Sophie were in the Clinic, hanging out at the charge nurse's station.

Chase was giving Sophie a lingering once- over, his eyes tracing her curves in her fitted light pink scoop neck t- shirt and tight black pants, naughty and creative thoughts swimming in his mind.

"So… how 'bout that quickie?" he murmured into her ear.

"You're quick but not _THAT_ quick. House'll be back any moment," she replied, a tiny smile playing about her lips.

"We can go for a little grope. There's an empty exam room right there," Chase coaxed her, jutting his head back in the direction of Exam Room 2, which was indeed empty.

"There's a waiting room full of patients!" she hissed, unable to wipe the grin off her face.

"So what? You can't treat them. You're not a doctor yet, remember?" he said coyly, his aquamarine eyes sparkling mischievously.

"If Cuddy catches us fooling around in an exam room, she'll fire _BOTH_ of us," she reminded him, ignoring the delicious tingles his suggestion was giving her throughout her body.

"No she won't," Chase said dismissively.

"…Why are you so sure?" Sophie asked, her eyebrow arching with suspicion at his confidence.

"Because I did a little favor for her this morning," he replied with a smug grin.

"The envelope," she said, finally understanding. "What was in it?"

"A copy of the application for the Clinical trial," Chase replied.

At this, Sophie immediately looked up from her paperwork, completely stunned.

"House wants to try LLLT for his leg?" she asked incredulously.

"Cuddy wants him to. So I called Eng and he's holding a spot for him," Chase told her.

"…And… you and Cuddy didn't ask him first?" she asked, even more surprised.

Chase furrowed his brow, just as surprised at her response.

"He would've said 'no,'" Chase said simply.

Sophie stared at him, having no idea how to respond. Chase sighed.

"You don't know House like we do. Trust me. This is the best way to deal with him," he explained to her.

"Why does House have to be _DEALT_ with?" she asked, becoming slightly irritated at Chase's attitude.

"So you think he should just continue to be in pain for the rest of his life?" Chase asked.

"It's not my decision to make. And it's not yours or Cuddy's either. It's _HIS_," Sophie said.

"We're just trying to help him," Chase argued.

"I'm not questioning your motives. I'm questioning the _RESULTS_. There's no guarantee that LLLT will work for him like it did for you," she pointed out.

"There's no reason why he can't try it," Chase said.

"Yes there is! If it doesn't work, he'll be _DEVASTATED_!" Sophie exclaimed.

The charge nurse and a few patients looked up in Sophie's direction at her outburst.

Suddenly aware that she had said that a little too loudly, she dragged Chase out of the Clinic and into the hallway, out of earshot of curious spectators.

"You told me not to get surgery to remove my adhesions," she reminded him.

"Because the procedure's invasive and the recovery's painful," he told her. "This is neither."

"And because I don't have a shot in _HELL_ of it being successful," she said, her eyes full of emotion.

"Which is why House should take the chance," he responded without missing a beat.

Their gazes still locked on each other, they had no idea that House was leaning up against the far wall, listening to their conversation.

But they were about to.

"Do we have a new patient?" House asked.

Sophie and Chase turned towards House, both shocked to see him there.

"Not yet. I'm still looking through the pile," Sophie said quickly.

"Grab anyone and tell them to go to exam 2," House ordered her, breezing past both of them as he went back into the Clinic.

Sophie was about to follow him, but Chase gently grabbed her arm to stop her.

"Sophie… I didn't mean to upset you by talking about the procedure—"

"You didn't," she assured him.

"But I know what he's going to go through if it doesn't work," she added before entering the Clinic.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Later that evening, Sophie and her mother, Susan, were in Exquisite Bride boutique in Princeton Village.

Sophie was standing on a wide low footstool, wearing her wedding dress, a white strapless floor length satin and chiffon gown with a diagonal, asymmetrical strip of delicate lace that ran the length of the bodice down to her hip. A soft chiffon cascading element floated down the side of the gown, while the back was accented with an elegant corset ribbon detail.

"You look gorgeous, honey," her mom said as her eyes welled up a bit.

"Mom, don't cry," Sophie told her with a smile.

"I'm not," she insisted.

"Not yet," she mumbled, winking at Marie, her bridal consultant, who was measuring and pinning the hem of her gown.

"I have the perfect veil to go with this dress," Marie told her.

"You're wearing white? Isn't that a little hypocritical?" House asked out of nowhere.

All three women spun around in the direction of his voice.

"Can I help you?" Marie asked House accusingly.

"What are you _DOING_ here?!" Sophie demanded.

"I need to talk to you," he replied simply.

"So you came here?! You couldn't call my cell?"

"If I had called you, you would've told me that you needed to call me back. I need to talk to you _NOW_," he stated, as if it made perfect sense.

Which, of course, in his head, it did.

Sophie blinked, feeling as if she had entered another dimension.

"Are you _INSANE_?!" she cried.

"It's possible. I ended my therapy sessions," he replied.

A bark of a laugh escaped Sophie's lips.

"Well I can't change yet. We're still making the alterations," she told him.

"So we'll talk here," he replied.

Before Sophie could say anything in response, Susan quickly intervened.

"We'll go look at veils and a mother- of- the- bride dress. Take all the time you need," Susan said, motioning to Marie to follow her to the other side of the store.

Once Susan and Marie were out of earshot, House motioned to a vintage plush couch that was in front of both of them.

"Have a seat," House said, offering his hand to her.

"Thanks," she said dryly as she took his hand, picked up the hem of her dress, carefully stepped off the stool and somehow managed to sit down in the dress.

"Nice dress," House told her.

"You heard everything that Chase and I were talking about outside the Clinic, didn't you?" Sophie asked.

"Yep," House replied.

"So... are you here to thank me or something?" she asked in confusion.

"You think I should try out the treatment?" he asked her flatly, looking her square in the eyes.

Sophie felt her breath catch in her throat, completely thrown by his question.

"…It's… not my call to make," she finally replied.

"What if it _WAS_?" he countered.

"What if you were a doctor, and I was your patient. What would you tell me?" he pressed her.

Feeling put on the spot, Sophie scrambled for an answer.

"… That… the success rate is documented at sixty- eight percent—" she began, a little unsure of herself.

"And if I was your patient, I'd say that meant that the failure rate was thirty- two percent. Most patients can add. Don't quote the statistics unless you want an argument," he told her.

"Then… I'd say there's a good chance it can work," she said instead.

"'_A good CHANCE?' It 'CAN work_?' What does that mean?" he demanded.

Sophie exhaled in great annoyance.

"House, what do you want me to say—"

"I want you to tell me what you would tell your _PATIENT_," he stated, his eyes boring through hers.

Sophie's mind immediately filled with a multitude of possible answers, as she stared into his bright cerulean eyes.

But she had no idea which one to choose.

"… I don't know," she finally admitted.

"Then you're not ready to be a doctor yet," he told her.

And with that, House got off the couch, leaving Sophie alone on the couch completely taken aback by what he had just told her.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

While Sophie was still at the bridal salon, Chase was at home sitting on the couch, eating beef lo- mein out of a white paper carton with chopsticks that he had ordered for dinner.

He wiped his mouth with a nearby paper towel and picked up his fortune cookie, popping open the plastic wrapper and cracking open the cookie to read his fortune:

**"YOU WILL STEP ON THE SOIL OF MANY COUNTRIES."**

Smirking a little at how bizarre the fortune was, he shoved it in his pocket and reached for his carton of lo- mein when his cell phone rang next to him on the couch.

He glanced at the caller ID and smiled when he read "**CAMERON**"

"Hey, what's up?" he said into the phone.

"You never called me back," Cameron replied on the other end.

"Sorry. Got caught up at work. So what's the big news?" he asked her, taking a swig of the Becks he had next to him.

Cameron drew in a breath, her excitement bubbling over once again.

"… I'm engaged…" she began.

Chase almost choked on his beer.

"Congratulations!" he exclaimed.

"And pregnant!" she added.

Chase audibly gasped.

Cameron grinned on the other end at his reaction.

"We're only at four weeks, so it's still early… but yeah," she said, smiling happily on the other end of the line.

Chase was completely stunned.

"…Did… did you plan this?" was all he could ask.

"No… it kinda just happened," she admitted.

"Are you still going to Africa?" he asked.

"Not right away. Sebastian's going to go for a couple of weeks, but when he comes back, we're moving to France, getting married there, and staying there for a while," she explained.

"We'd really love it if you and Sophie came to the wedding," Cameron said warmly.

At first, Chase paused.

"When's the date?"

"July 8th. It's a Sunday at the George Cinq Hotel in Paris," she replied.

Chase knew that Sophie's twenty- fifth birthday was July 7.

And he wasn't exactly sure how she'd feel about going to Cameron's wedding, especially knowing that she was already pregnant.

But he had absolutely no idea how he was going to say 'no' to Cameron.

"We'd love to come," he finally said.

TBC…


	44. Chapter 44

**HI EVERYONE!**

**SORRY I TOOK SO LONG. I WAS READY TO POST EARLIER TODAY, BUT THEN WE WENT OUT TRICK OR TREATING. :D**

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****************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 44: Please read and comment.**

That night, Sophie was lying awake in her and Chase's bed, listening to Chase snore loudly as he slept naked on his back next to her.

Earlier that evening, after she had returned from her dress fitting, he pulled her into an intimate kiss in the foyer, making her knees go weak.

He then carried her up the stairs to their bedroom.

At first, she protested, saying that he shouldn't push it with his ankle.

But he didn't listen to her.

She lost count of the number of orgasms he'd given her. Every touch of his fingertips, every sweet brush of his lips against her skin seemed to bring her to ecstasy. Each time he filled her, slowly, deeply, it was glorious.

She couldn't remember the last time she had felt so much pleasure.

Which is why she hated the fact that she was still wide- awake.

But the problem was, she had no idea why.

She knew that it wasn't the wedding dress or the wedding that was making her lose sleep. She absolutely loved the dress she picked and she was more excited than ever to get married to Chase.

And even though House had that told her earlier that evening that she wasn't ready to be a doctor, the initial shock of his statement had worn off, and she had basically chalked it up to him being who he is.

But she knew that something had been bothering her ever since he had barged in on her dress fitting at the bridal boutique.

But she couldn't put her finger on it.

She glanced at the clock, which read 3:16 am, exhaled in frustration, rolled over towards Chase, draped her arm around his bare midsection and leaned against his smooth, toned chest.

To her surprise, Chase immediately stopped snoring and lazily wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer to him.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you," Sophie apologized, wrapping her leg over his as he held her.

"S'ok…" Chase murmured in a raspy voice. "Can't sleep?"

"Yeah," she sighed.

"Was I snoring?" he mumbled drowsily.

She giggled. "Yeah, but that's not it."

He stroked her hair. "Wanna talk about it?" he asked, his eyes still closed.

Still having no specific idea what was bothering her so much, she said the only other thing that was on her mind.

"House told me that I'm not ready to be a doctor," she stated.

Chase opened his eyes slowly and looked down at her.

"When was this?" he asked as she lifted her head to meet his eyes that seem to shimmer in the darkness of their room.

"Tonight. He showed up at my dress fitting," she replied.

Chase grunted as he rolled both of them over on their sides so he could face her.

"You wanna start from the beginning?" he asked.

"…He asked me what I would tell him to do about the LLLT Clinical Trial if I was his doctor," she said.

"What did you tell him?"

"I told him that I didn't know," she mumbled with a shrug, looking down at the pattern on their quilt.

"Then you did the right thing," he told her.

She tsked. "Robbie, I sounded ridiculous."

"No you didn't. You told the truth," he said simply.

Sophie didn't reply, still avoiding his gaze.

"And you're _NOT_ ready to be a doctor. You still have an entire year of medical school left," he reminded her.

At this, she rolled her eyes, snorted and rolled over away from him, pulling the blanket up over her naked frame.

"One year more isn't suddenly going to make me sure of myself," she said.

Chase frowned a bit and scooted up behind her, pressing the front of his body against her back. He kissed her bare shoulder, caressing her skin with the tips of his fingers.

"Look. This job is hard. _REALLY_ hard. Patients depend on you for the answers, and you might not always have one. Even doctors who've been practicing for thirty years sometimes don't know what to say to a patient," he said.

"Then maybe he's right," Sophie muttered.

"He's _NOT_ right," Chase insisted.

Sophie still didn't turn around.

"You never let anything he says bother you. Why this?" Chase asked, furrowing his brow.

She shrugged, not answering him.

"…Is something _ELSE_ bothering you?" he pressed gently.

"… I don't know…" she admitted in a small voice.

Chase gently touched her shoulder to roll her over onto her back and smoothed her hair away from her face.

"Are you nervous about the wedding?" he asked tenderly.

"No," she replied, shaking her head.

Chase smiled softly. "How does your dress look?"

"I can't tell you that," she said, a teasing hint to her voice.

"I didn't ask you _WHAT_ it looked like," he responded coyly.

"It's beautiful," she admitted, the tiny smile at her lips widening.

"_YOU'RE_ beautiful," he said sincerely.

At his words, she felt a surprisingly odd twinge spread through her chest.

Normally, she loved it when Chase threw her a compliment.

But that's not what she felt this time.

She reached up to touch his face, ignoring her own feelings.

"So are you," she replied.

He bent down a bit to kiss her in the darkness. Afterwards, as he felt himself getting lost in her deep brown eyes, he remembered that he hadn't told her about Cameron's engagement.

"…Got any plans for your birthday?" he asked her.

"Not really, why?" she asked.

He paused, hoping that he wasn't about to make her feel worse.

"Feel like going to Paris?"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next morning, House was in his office, playing lacrosse with his cane and his ball against the wall to avoid the mountain of paperwork that was piled on his desk when Wilson came in.

"You are not gonna _BELIEVE_ who I just spoke to," Wilson announced dramatically.

House caught his red and grey ball on the handle of his cane and took a well- timed pause.

"Cameron," he replied, just as dramatically.

Wilson did a double take.

"… How did you—" Wilson began, flabbergasted.

House then picked up an envelope off his desk with a flourish, held it to his forehead and closed his eyes.

"And she told you that she's marrying the Great Dr. Sebastian Charles in Paris at the Georges Cinq Hotel on July 8," House stated.

Wilson snorted in disgust. "She called you first," he muttered as he sank down in House's lounge chair.

"I'm surprised she called you at _ALL_," House said.

Wilson shrugged as he propped his feet up on the matching Ottoman in front of House's chair.

"Are you gonna go?" House asked, eyeing his friend thoughtfully.

Wilson shrugged. "Sophie and Chase are going…"

"That's not what I asked you," House interrupted.

"I know that's not what you asked me," Wilson mumbled, avoiding House's penetrating stare.

House kept his eyes on Wilson for a moment longer before returning back to his wall- lacrosse game.

"Tell her you can't make it. Tell her you have some oncology thingy that you can't get out of," House offered casually.

"I _DON'T_ have some oncology thingy that I can't get out of," Wilson informed him.

"And you suddenly have a moral objection to lying to a former colleague that's now living on an entirely different continent," House said.

"Cameron's a _FRIEND_," Wilson argued.

"Do you call her? Do you post on her Facebook wall?" House countered.

Wilson furrowed his brow in surprise.

"Cameron's on Facebook?" he asked.

House rolled his eyes. "Trust me. She'll be too deliriously happy that day to even notice you're not there," House assured him.

"… Yeah…" Wilson said, getting lost in his own thoughts.

At this, House stopped chucking the ball against the wall and turned towards Wilson.

"You don't want to go to Sophie's wedding, either," House declared.

Wilson's eyes almost popped out of his head.

"She's my _SISTER_! Of _COURSE_ I want to go—" Wilson exclaimed.

"No you don't," House said.

"She's getting married in the same place _YOU_ were supposed to get married. The same weekend, in fact," House reminded him.

Wilson hardened his jaw, shifting his weight on House's chair.

"My sucky love life isn't a good excuse to be a no- show at my own sister's wedding," Wilson said under his breath.

A smug little smile formed on House's face.

"Which means you've been thinking of excuses to get out of it," House stated.

Wilson closed his eyes and let out a heavy breath. He raked his fingers through his hair, his guilt washing over him.

"I'm terrible, right?" Wilson asked sadly, finally opening his eyes.

"You're human. We're all terrible," House replied plainly.

Wilson let out a defeated laugh. "Great."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Later that day, Cuddy was in her office, booking her and House's flight to Paris for Cameron's wedding over the internet. House was in there, too, leaning against the credenza behind her desk.

"First class," House told her, looking over her shoulder.

"Like I'd do anything else?" she shot back.

House's eyes trailed down to Cuddy's bare and shapely legs, accented by a pair of red stiletto heels, which were crossed as she sat sideways at her desk.

"When's the last time we had sex in this office?" he asked.

"That would be never," she replied.

House turned down his lower lip, nodding.

"We should rectify that," he told her in his most serious tone.

"That's not gonna happen," she asserted, her back still facing him as she continued to choose options for their flight.

"We had sex in _MY_ office," he reminded her.

"And this is _MY_ office," she emphasized, a smile tugging at her lips, refusing to give him the satisfaction of turning around.

"So your office has been officially designated as a '_no nookie zone_?'" he pressed.

"You didn't get the memo?" she quipped lightly.

At that, House hopped off the credenza, leaned over to her and squeezed her breast from behind her over her tailored short sleeve blouse.

"Stop it!" she squealed, swatting his hand away, darting a nervous glance through the glass wall of her office.

"No one can see us," he muttered, returning his hand back to her breast, tweaking her now erect nipple through the fabric.

"Can't you wait until we get home?" she asked.

"Would _YOU_ be able to wait if you were me?" he retorted, brushing his thumb across her areola.

"I'm taking that as a compliment," she replied, now giving him a sexy smile as she looked up at him.

He lowered his head to kiss her, his lips engulfing hers possessively, his tongue dancing lightly in her mouth, his hand still on her breast as the door to her office opened.

"Whoops," Sophie said in embarrassment as she realized what she walked in on.

Cuddy immediately broke off their kiss, her face flushing a delicate shade of pink as she turned around in her chair, straightening her back in the process.

"You're embarrassed in front of her? She and Chase are doing it all over this hospital!" House declared.

Sophie kept her best poker face at House's remark, remaining stoic.

But her own blush on her cheeks gave her secret away.

Cuddy arched her eyebrow with extreme interest, a smirk forming on her lips.

"Janitor's closet?" Cuddy asked.

"… Sleep lab," Sophie mumbled in embarrassment.

Cuddy grinned. "So what's going on?" she asked her.

She hesitated for a moment, eyeing House as his stare seemed to pierce right through her.

"It can wait," she said, with a dismissive wave of her hand.

"You sure?" Cuddy asked.

"Yeah, it's fine," Sophie repeated, turning on her heel to leave the office.

"She wants to tell you that I asked her if I should try the LLLT Clinical trial," House declared before Sophie could leave the office.

Sophie froze in her tracks, slowly turning around to face them again.

Cuddy was stunned, looking back and forth between the two of them.

"…What did you tell him?" Cuddy finally asked her.

"She told me that she didn't know what to tell me and I told her that she's not ready to be a doctor," House answered for her.

"Thanks," Sophie said dryly.

"I'm sure that was just his way of motivating you—" Cuddy began.

"I don't think you should do it," Sophie interrupted firmly, looking at House.

Cuddy was completely shocked.

But House wasn't.

"… Because… you know there's a chance it might not work?" Cuddy asked, confused.

"Because she knows there's a chance it _WILL_ work," House explained.

"… Just like it worked for Chase," he added, penetrating her with his gaze.

The twinge that Sophie felt the night before through her chest was now in full force, rampaging through her insides.

She smiled sheepishly, despite the sadness in her eyes. She sank down on the couch in Cuddy's office as Cuddy got up from her chair and sat down next to her.

"I love Robbie. I love him so much…" she began forlornly.

"…And I'm so happy that he's not in pain anymore," she continued as Cuddy rubbed her back.

"But there was a part of you that took comfort that you were both broken," House said.

Sophie nodded miserably.

"And now he's not," House added.

"And neither are _YOU_," Cuddy asserted to her, shooting House an angry glare.

"I'm terrible, right?" Sophie said with a disgusted laugh.

"It runs in your family," House remarked, thinking of Wilson's earlier confession.

Sophie didn't even bother to acknowledge House's statement. She merely leaned forward heavily into her hands.

"Listen to me. Remember when you told me that just because I had a miscarriage that I'm not a failure as a woman?" Cuddy asked her.

She nodded in response, keeping her eyes glued to the floor.

But Cuddy refused to let her wallow in her misery.

She placed her hands on Sophie's shoulders, forcing her to face her, meeting her eyes with her own.

"Just because you can't have children doesn't mean that both of you can't have a family," Cuddy told her gently, yet firmly.

"I know that…" Sophie said.

"Especially after I make a phone call to whatever adoption agency you decide to use," Cuddy added.

At this, Sophie managed a grateful smile.

"Does Chase know how you feel?" House asked.

"No," Sophie replied, her tone still glum.

"Huh," House said, tilting his head.

And with that, House crossed the room to the door.

"I'll leave you two ladies alone," he said on his way out.

But as he reached the door handle, he turned around once more to face both women.

"If you start kissing, page me," he told them before leaving Cuddy's office.

TBC…


	45. Author's Note

Author's note: Please be aware that **CHAPTER 44** has been posted on **"ALL IN."**

I don't know why the story didn't go to the top of the list after I posted a new chapter.

But hopefully, posting this message will fix that.

Thank you for reading!

Please let me know your thoughts on Chapter 44 and enjoy!! :D


	46. Chapter 45

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS FOR READING AND REVIEWING!! **

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

****************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 45: Please read and comment.**

Chase was in the doctor's lounge, rooting through the refrigerator for some kind of carbonated beverage that wouldn't be missed if he stole it when House came in.

He glanced at another doctor who was clad in scrubs and fast asleep on the sofa, facing away from him.

"You didn't tell her," House stated aloud, ignoring the sleeping doctor.

Chase spun around with a bottle of Sierra Mist in his hand, surprised to see House.

"Tell who what?" Chase asked, confused.

"You didn't tell Sophie that Cameron was pregnant," House clarified, limping up to him.

Chase paused for only a moment, raising his eyebrows.

"Cameron called you?" Chase asked, slightly surprised.

"Yes. And she sent me a fax of the ultrasound of the gestational sac to check for abnormalities," House replied.

Chase's eyes widened tremendously.

"You're _KIDDING_ me."

"Yeah, I am," House said, taking the soda out of his hand, taking advantaged of Chase's stunned state.

Chase snorted, rolled his eyes and turned back into the refrigerator to try to pilfer something else.

"Wilson's lunch should be back there somewhere," House said.

Finding a Tupperware container that read, "P**ROPERTY OF JAMES WILSON. VIOLATORS WILL BE CUT OFF FROM THEIR VICODIN SUPPLY,**" Chase gracefully tossed it to House, who caught close to his body.

"You didn't tell Sophie about Cameron because you knew that it would upset her," House stated as he went over to the counter to find a plastic fork.

"And why is that a bad thing?" Chase asked, his head back in the refrigerator.

"It's not," House said with a shrug as he opened up Wilson's lunch, revealing leftover rigatoni and lemon chicken that Wilson had cooked last night.

House immediately dug in, not bothering to heat it up in the nearby microwave.

"But considering that Sophie just confessed to me and Cuddy that she's miserable that you can walk and that she can't get pregnant…" House said between bites, trailing off.

At this, Chase took his head out of the refrigerator, holding a can of Sprite Zero, and fixed his gaze on House.

"…She said that?" Chase finally said.

"Technically, I said it," House said as he chewed. "But she didn't disagree."

Chase just stood there, having no idea what to say or do.

House nodded. "I'll leave you to screw this up all on your own," he declared, making his way out of the lounge with Wilson's lunch, leaving Chase to mull over what he had said.

Still stymied, Chase slowly placed the Sprite Zero back in the fridge, closed the door and left the lounge.

As the door closed behind him, Danny rolled over on the couch, facing the closed door to the lounge, with a tiny smile on his face.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

A short time later, Sophie was at the Charge Nurse's station in the Clinic when Danny came up to her.

"Hey," Danny said in a friendly manner.

Sophie glanced up from the chart she was reading only for a second, her eyebrow arching slightly.

"… Hi," she said cautiously.

"Got an patient in Exam 2. Feel like getting your diagnosis on?" he asked, flashing a grin at her.

Sophie winced at his attempt to be cool.

"House is going to be back in a few minutes," she replied.

"But he's not back yet…" he said in a leading tone, opening the chart he was holding so she could see the inside.

Sophie quickly skimmed the chart, seeing that the patient was a one- year old boy who had a follow up appointment after an ear infection.

Thinking that she didn't want to appear unprofessional and that the appointment would probably only take a few minutes, she exhaled and shrugged.

"All right," she acquiesced.

------------------------------------------------------------------

A moment later, Sophie and Danny entered the exam room to see a smiling mother in her mid thirties, holding her very blonde and adorable one- year old son on her lap.

Sophie immediately smiled at the two of them, quickly checking the pocket of her lab coat to see if she had any of the silicone animal toys that she always kept in there for the children who came into the Clinic.

"Hi I'm Doctor Stone," Danny said, introducting himself. "This is my assistant, Ms. Wilson. You're here for a follow- up?"

"Yes. For Chase's ears," the mother said, bobbing her child on her lap.

Sophie grinned upon hearing the child's name.

"That's a great name," she said sincerely.

The mother smiled in return. "Thank you."

Danny glanced at the chart, ignoring the conversation between the two women.

"Did you finish all the antibiotic?" he asked the mother.

"Yes," the mother replied dutifully, nodding at Danny.

"Ok, let's take a look," Danny said, grabbing a nearby otoscope that was resting on the counter.

After scrutinizing both of little Chase's ears, Danny handed the instrument to Sophie.

"Ms. Wilson, what do you see?" he asked her.

Sophie raised her eyebrows for a moment before taking the otoscope from him.

"…There's still some fluid in both ears," she said after critically examining baby Chase's ears.

The mother looked at Danny for confirmation, who nodded in agreement.

"But he feels fine," the mother argued sadly.

"That's good. But the infection is still there," Danny replied simply.

"Ms. Wilson, let's run a Tympanogram," Danny said to Sophie in a supervisory tone.

"Yes, doctor," Sophie said, starting to get inwardly annoyed at Danny calling her "_Ms. Wilson._"

But she didn't let on as she walked across the room to a small rolling cart on which a Tympanogram device was resting. The mother eyed the machine nervously.

"It only takes a minute in each ear, and it won't hurt at all. You only have to hold his head still," Sophie reassured the mother.

The mother nodded, gently grabbing little Chase's cheeks. Chase immediately pulled away from her grasp.

At this, Danny got a firm grip on the baby's cheeks, causing him to shriek.

"You're _HURTING_ him!" Sophie argued.

"I got him. Just do the test," he ordered her curtly.

Sophie shot Danny a dirty look as she performed the test, placing the probe in each of little Chase's ears one at a time, waiting for the digital readout.

After the two minutes that it took to perform the test, Danny let go of Chase, who was now crying bitterly. His mother held him and tried to soothe him as Danny examined the print- out of the test results.

Sophie handed the mother a brightly colored silicone toy lizard to help calm Chase down. Chase's cries turned into little whimpers as the mother gasped for effect for her child as she gave him the toy.

"Look what you got!" the mother said to her child lovingly.

Sophie smiled softly as she watched the two of them together, Chase calming down a bit more as his mother distracted him with the toy.

"Well… the eardrum's almost back to normal," Danny said, examining the test results. "Let's keep him on the antibiotic for ten more days—"

"He's been on antibiotic for _TWO MONTHS_, and it's not doing anything. There's gotta be something else you can do for him," the mother interrupted in frustration.

Danny looked up from the results at the mother with an arched eyebrow.

"There's a surgical procedure we can try called a Tympanostomy," he said with a shrug.

The mother's eyes almost popped out of her head.

"_SURGERY_?!" she exclaimed, holding little Chase a bit tighter.

"We make an incision in the eardrum to drain persistent fluid and then insert a small plastic tube to prevent re-accumulation of the fluid. It only takes fifteen minutes, and Chase would only be under general anesthesia for an hour," Danny explained efficiently.

The mother's eyes darted back and forth between Sophie and Danny nervously.

Sophie remained quiet, knowing it wasn't her place to give a medical opinion.

"… Could we try the antibiotic for ten more days?" the mother suggested.

"Sure we can," Danny replied with a nod.

"Thank you," the mother said, exhaling in relief as Danny wrote her a new prescription.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

A few moments later, after the mother and little Chase left the exam room, Sophie followed Danny back to the Charge Nurse's station.

"You manipulated that mother," Sophie declared in annoyance.

"Sure did," Danny said with a self- righteous smile as he signed off on the chart.

"You're an ass," Sophie muttered, not caring about her professionalism at the moment.

Danny shot her an amused glance.

"I just presented the mother with another alternative. And she made a choice," Danny explained.

"You _SCARED_ her into making that choice," Sophie argued.

"That's what House does with every patient," Danny reminded her.

"He's an ass, too. But he's a _BRILLIANT_ ass. You're just an _ass_," Sophie shot back.

As she began to walk away from him, Danny kept his eyes on her, poised to strike.

"You going to Dr. Cameron's wedding?" he called out to her, making her stop in her tracks.

She turned around, surprised.

"… Yeah… are you?"

"Nope. Wasn't invited," he said with a shrug.

"…Then how do you know about it?" she asked, furrowing her brow in suspicion.

"I heard House and Chase talking about it in the lounge earlier," he replied casually.

Sophie nodded slowly, about to walk away from him again.

"Did you hear that Cameron's pregnant?" Danny asked after another well- timed pause.

Upon hearing this, Sophie stopped again.

But this time, she didn't turn around.

"Yeah, didn't think so," Danny said with a slight chuckle.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

At around the same time that Sophie was in the Clinic, Chase strode into Cuddy's office.

"Got a minute?" he asked her.

"Sure, what's up?" Cuddy replied, briefly looking up from her paperwork at Chase, who took a seat in one of the empty chairs in front of her desk.

"Did Sophie really admit that she's miserable that I can walk?" Chase asked her.

Cuddy stopped writing, her pen frozen in her hand.

She exhaled deeply, placing her pen on the desk and leaning back in her chair as she gazed at Chase, who looked like a little boy who had just had his feeling hurt. She smiled sympathetically at him.

"Sophie _LOVES_ you. And she's happy that you're not in pain anymore," Cuddy said.

"But she's jealous because they fixed me and they can't fix her," Chase said, forlorn.

Cuddy's felt for Chase, but couldn't help but shrug a little.

"… Do you really not understand that?" she asked carefully.

"No, I do…" he began, pausing thoughtfully.

"…Which is exactly the reason why I didn't tell her that Cameron was pregnant," he added softly, looking down at his lap.

"Cameron's wedding is in two weeks. You don't think she's gonna find out before then?" she asked him as gently as she could.

"Are you gonna tell her anything?" Chase asked her pointedly.

"No… but—"

"And neither am I, neither will House, and neither will Wilson," Chase interrupted firmly.

"You sure you're doing the right thing?" Cuddy asked.

Chase pursed his lips together, trying to maintain his resolve.

"She's been through enough. I don't need to put her through any more," Chase said quietly before leaving Cuddy's office.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

House was in the cafeteria, finishing off the remainder of Wilson's rigatoni and lemon chicken when Sophie sat down at the table across from him.

"I called you an ass today," Sophie stated.

"I _KNEW_ my ears were burning for a reason. I thought it was just a rash," House replied, not looking up from the now almost empty Tupperware.

"I was actually defending you," she added.

At this, House looked up.

"Ok, this should be interesting…" he said.

"Dr. Stone manipulated the mother of a patient into continuing treatment for her child by scaring her with an unnecessary surgical procedure as an option," Sophie explained.

"Hm. He got a current resume?" House asked, having no idea who Dr. Stone was.

"He's a _PRICK_," Sophie muttered, folding her arms across her chest in disgust and leaning back in her chair.

"Ohhh… Dr. Stone is 'Poker Guy.'" House said in realization. "He's still trying to get into your panties?"

"He told me Cameron's pregnant," Sophie said casually.

House tilted his head.

"Hm. Not exactly the best pick- up line… but I've heard worse—"

"Does Chase know?" she asked, maintaining her calm demeanor.

House inhaled slightly, remaining silent.

Sophie nodded slowly, understanding his lack of a response as a '_yes_.'

"… Yeah, I figured," was all she said before she got up from her chair, leaving House alone once again at the table.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

At around the same time Sophie was in the cafeteria, Chase was in the ER, perusing over a file that had been handed to him for a consult when Danny came up behind him.

"What happened to your cane?" Danny asked him.

"Go away," Chase said, recognizing Danny's voice, not bothering to look up from the file as he stepped away from him.

Undeterred, Danny looked down at Chase's feet and then back up at his face, following him through the ER.

"You're not limping anymore, either," Danny commented.

"What part of 'go away' do you not understand?" Chase asked in irritation.

"Why didn't you tell Sophie that Cameron was pregnant?" Danny pressed.

Chase spun around in total shock, facing Danny, who looked completely calm.

"I heard you talking to House in the lounge," Danny explained casually.

Chase let out a little laugh of pure disgust before turning away once more.

"She really can't have kids?" Danny asked.

At this, Chase spun around in a flash, grabbed Danny by the collar of his lab coat and slammed him roughly up against the wall as the contents of the patient file he was holding scattering onto the floor.

"You ever ask me _ANYTHING_ about my Sophie again, and I'll beat the _SHIT_ out of you right in the middle of this hospital, and I don't care who sees it or what happens because of it," Chase told him furiously, his eyes blazing.

The entire ER became silent, the other doctors, nurses and even the patients all staring at the two men.

"Do you understand me?" Chase demanded angrily, still piercing him with his stare.

Danny swallowed nervously and nodded as Chase held him fast to the wall.

After a moment, Chase released his grip on Danny, his heart hammering in his chest.

He then picked up the patient's file and it's strewn contents and left the ER.

TBC…


	47. Chapter 46

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR GREAT COMMENTS!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**AND FOR ALL MY HUDDY BUDDIES... JUST KNOW THAT I'LL _NEVER_ LET YOU DOWN....**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :D **

**************************************************************** **

**CHAPTER 46: Please read and comment.**

"You ever ask me _ANYTHING_ about my Sophie again, and I'll beat the _SHIT_ out of you right in the middle of this hospital, and I don't care who sees it or what happens because of it," Chase told Danny furiously, his eyes blazing.

The entire ER became silent, the other doctors, nurses and even the patients all staring at the two men as Chase had Danny pinned up against the wall, the lapel of Danny's lab coat clenched tightly in his fist.

"Do you understand me?" Chase demanded angrily, still piercing him with his stare.

Danny swallowed nervously and nodded as Chase held him fast to the wall.

After a moment, Chase released his grip on Danny, his heart hammering in his chest.

He then picked up the patient's file and it's strewn contents and left the ER.

* * *

Later that evening, Cuddy was packing her black leather designer briefcase to get ready to leave for home when House pushed open the glass door to her office, holding a manila envelope in his hand.

"You ready to leave yet?" Cuddy asked as he walked in, not looking up from her bag.

House let the door close behind him.

"Chase beat the crap out of another doctor in the ER," House stated.

"_WHAT_?!" Cuddy exclaimed in shock, looking up from her bag.

"Well, not _REALLY_…" House said, trailing off.

"…But since that's what I just told Wilson, that'll be the rumor that'll spread around this place by the end of the day," he added, limping up to her desk.

Cuddy let out a long, frustrated breath, slumping her shoulders.

"Why did you tell Wilson that?" she asked flatly, almost regretting hearing an answer.

"Because Chase threatened this guy that has the hots for Sophie asked him why she can't have kids,"

Cuddy's eyes went wide.

"And Chase shoved him up against the wall and told him that if he ever so much as mentioned her name again, he was GOING to beat the crap out of him," House added.

"This is _CHASE_ we're talking about, right?" Cuddy clarified in slight disbelief.

"Yep," House replied.

"… Wow," Cuddy said, shaking her head as she focused back on her briefcase.

"I never thought I'd see the day when Chase would risk getting fired or sued," House commented.

"Some would call that personal growth," Cuddy retorted.

"And others would call it '_crazy_,'" House replied.

"Love makes you do crazy things, I guess," she said with a shrug.

At this, House presented her with the manila envelope he had been holding.

"Sure does," he said.

Cuddy arched her brows slightly before taking the envelope from him.

House could feel his anticipation grow inside him as he watched her open the flap, take out the papers inside them and skim the front page.

And her eyes widened once again.

"…These are the forms for the LLLT Clinical Trial at NYU…" Cuddy managed to say.

"You think the hospital'll float the bill for the postage?" he asked.

Cuddy shook her head. "This isn't some kind of a cruel joke, is it? You're not trying to fool Wilson or something?"

House glanced down at the floor for a moment before gazing back up at her.

"… Like you said, I want to be able to run after my own kid, right?" he said in a gruff voice, almost embarrassed.

She nodded slowly, her face morphing into a soft smile.

"Can I take you home?" he asked her softly, getting lost in her blue- grey eyes.

"No," she said, shaking her head.

House furrowed his brow as he watched her turn around and close the blinds behind her desk.

She then walked past him and closed all of the blinds in the front of her office.

House followed her with his gaze, more curious than ever.

A wicked grin played about her lips as she took his hand and led him back to her desk, where she took a seat on top of it, facing him.

She then spread her legs apart and pulled him closer to her, taking his sport jacket off his shoulders.

"What are you doing?" he couldn't help but ask.

"If you're going to run after your own kid, don't you think you'd better knock me up first?" she asked coyly as she started to unbutton his shirt.

But as she continued to work the buttons, House placed his hands over hers, stopping her for the moment.

"You said that we'd _NEVER_ have sex on your desk," House reminded her, his bright blue eyes boring into hers.

She placed her hands on both sides of his cheeks, pulling him closer to her.

"Everybody lies," she murmured as their lips came together.

As they kissed each other passionately, House almost couldn't believe what was happening.

His greatest sexual fantasy was coming to life.

He probed his tongue deeply into her mouth, wrapping his arms around her possessively. She moaned in response, spreading her legs a little more for him, her black pencil skirt sliding up her thighs.

She could feel his erection through his jeans against her already moist panties. She bucked her hips against him, wanting so much more than the slightly teasing friction he was giving her.

She reached down in between their bodies and undid his fly. When she slipped her hand inside the slit of his boxers, he shuddered at her hand on his rock hard shaft.

He wasted no time dexterously unbuttoning her delicate pink blouse, exposing her breasts which were barely covered in a lacy light pink balconet bra.

"_Wow_," he blurted out at the sight of her.

Cuddy squealed in pleasure as he peeled down one of the straps and clamped his mouth down onto her nipple. She arched her head back in delight, pushing her breast further into his mouth as she continued to work on his zipper.

He groaned against her exposed breast as he felt her soft hand start to pump his cock.

"_SO_ not fair," he mumbled against her breast.

"Too bad…" she breathed in a throaty tone.

Fluttering his tongue against her nipple, House hiked her black straight skirt up her thighs and grabbed her ass in both of his hands. She wrapped her legs tightly around his back, pressing her pelvis even harder against him.

She could already feel her orgasm building. It had been quite a while since they had sex, and she was more than ready.

But House had other ideas.

She gasped aloud at the touch of his fingertips against her slit underneath her panties. He teased her labia mercilessly, almost bringing her to the edge with his touch.

He continued to stroke her with his fingertips, eliciting more primal sounds from her. He knew how badly she wanted this, and he knew that she wasn't going to want him to tease her for much longer.

But his cock was throbbing at the sight of her passion. Her lips parted, her breath shallow, her cheeks flushed with desire was almost too much for him to bear.

"Take off my panties," she begged him.

"Not yet…" he whispered, his eyes intent on the glorious sight before him.

"Greg… please…"

He slid two fingers inside her, causing her to cry out.

Grabbing onto the edge of the desk, she thrust her hips as he finger fucked her, desperate whimpers emanating from her lips.

"You want more?" he asked in a gutteral tone.

"Yes.." she squealed.

At this, he ceased his ministrations only for a moment as he peeled her soaked panties down past her legs and heels and tossed them somewhere behind him.

He then reached behind her and shoved all of the neatly piled paperwork off her desk.

He grabbed her hips and pulled her closer to him until her ass was at the edge of the desk, causing her to shriek in anticipation.

Grabbing hold of her legs and placing them against his chest, he entered her in one rough motion, making her cry out once again.

He leaned forward closer to her and began thrusting deeply into her, over and over again, keeping both her legs against him as she lie back on the surface of her desk, taking everything he was giving her.

"God… Lisa…"

"Oh _GOD_!" she finally squealed as wet walls clamped around his cock, her orgasm hitting her hard and deep, arching back.

His entire body jerked as he exploded inside her. She grabbed his arms as he continued to pump into her, holding him steady.

Afterwards, he lowered himself down onto her, breathing hard, his face in between her one exposed and one bra- covered breasts.

"You ok?" she asked, threading her fingers through the back of his hair.

He exhaled deeply. "Never better."

They lay there on the desk in wonderful, satiated silence for another moment.

"I just want to make it clear that this was a one time event," Cuddy suddenly said.

"Thank god, 'cause I'm too old for this," he replied without missing a beat.

* * *

Some time later, House and Cuddy left the hospital and headed towards the parking lot, the warm June night air enveloping them like a blanket.

"Next time, you're on top," he told her.

"I told you that was a one time event," she reminded him, trying not to show him the grin that was threatening the corners of her mouth.

"Yeah, right," he muttered playfully.

"It's not happening," she stated.

He tugged at her hand, stopping her stride towards her car and faced her.

"Leave your car. I'll take you home on the bike," he said, his eyes tracing her face, which was still flushed from before.

"No way," she replied, unable to keep the smile off her face at this point.

"You're afraid? You've already ridden on it twice," he reminded her.

"I don't think holding onto you while riding on a vibrating crotch rocket down the streets of Princeton is conducive to a successful conception," she said.

He shrugged. "Depends which way you're facing."

Cuddy shook her head and laughed slightly.

"C'mon. You're Lisa Cuddy, Dean of Medicine. You can do anything," he coaxed her, wrapping his arms around her waist.

She rolled her eyes and snorted lightly.

"… All right," she acquiesced.

* * *

From his office window, Wilson watched House wrap his arms around Cuddy and eventually lead her to his reserved handicapped parking spot where his bike was waiting for him.

As he watched them gracefully ride out together, his heart ached, torn between two opposing forces, feeling happy for both of them, but miserable for himself.

He sighed as he grabbed his briefcase off his desk and flicked off the light before exiting his office for the night.

* * *

Chase was in the locker room, changing out of his scrubs and putting on a t- shirt in front of his open locker when he heard Sophie's voice.

"Heard you kicked Danny's ass down in the ER while defending my honor," she said with a half- smile.

Chase turned towards her and chuckled slightly.

"And who told you that?" he asked.

"'_They_,'" she said with a playful shrug.

"'They' talk a lot, don't they?" he quipped with a soft smile.

"Mhm…" she said, slowly walking up to him, draping her arms around his neck.

"That's… not exactly what happened," he admitted as he pulled her closer to him, his arms wrapped low about her hips.

"I have a feeling it's close enough," she told him.

He kissed her gently and pulled her against his chest. She nuzzled against his soft cotton t- shirt, getting lost in his scent.

"Is it bad that I got turned on when I heard about it?" she asked.

"Not from my end," he replied, hugging her tighter.

Chase closed his eyes as he buried his face in the softness of her hair, forgetting about Danny and the rest of the world for a moment.

"…So how far along is Cameron?" Sophie asked softly.

At this, Chase's eyes flew open, his body tensing.

"…Four weeks," he finally said, still holding her against him.

She nodded. "That's great," she said.

"I was gonna tell you—" he began apologetically.

"No you weren't," she interrupted him.

Chase felt anxiety spread through his chest as she loosened her embrace and looked up at him with a sweet, yet tired expression.

"But I know why you didn't," she added.

"…You're not angry?" he asked warily.

She shook her head. "You tried to spare my feelings. Why would I be angry?"

Chase let out a breath of relief, relaxing considerably.

But Sophie wasn't relaxed at all.

"But I don't think that we should keep things like this from each other anymore," she added, feeling a sudden pang in her chest.

"I agree," he said, nodding.

Sophie then pressed her lips together, gathering the strength inside her, ignoring the pervasive ache that was spreading inside her chest.

"I'm jealous of you," she blurted out.

"I'm jealous… that they fixed you… and that they can't fix me," she continued, trying to remain as strong as possible.

Chase frowned, reaching up to caress her face.

"Baby…" he began sympathetically.

"No. I don't want you to pity me," she stated firmly, moving her cheek away from him.

"I just… wanted you to know that that's how I feel… because... we need to be honest with each other," she affirmed.

Chase nodded, noticing how she was trying to control the quivering of her lower lip.

"…Ok," he said.

She took a deep breath and let it out, hoping that the ache in her chest would subside now that she had admitted her feelings.

But it didn't.

She placed her hand on her chest as the pain intensified inside her.

"Honey, are you ok?" Chase asked her worriedly.

"...I don't feel so good…" she said, her breath shallowing as she spoke.

Chase grabbed her wrist and felt her pulse.

"Your heart's racing," he told her as calmly as he could.

"…Can we go home?" she asked weakly.

"No. We're going down to ER," he told her firmly.

TBC...


	48. Chapter 47

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING AND POSTING!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

* * *

**CHAPTER 47: Please read and comment.**

A short while later, Chase and Sophie were down in the ER.

Sophie was wearing a hospital gown, lying flat on her back and perfectly still on a cushioned examination table with EKG electrodes affixed to strategic places on her chest, stomach wrists and ankles.

Chase critically eyed the monitor as he performed the test on her heart for the second time.

After a few moments, Chase exhaled in relief.

"Your heart's fine," he told her with a small smile.

"So it was anxiety," she said.

"Looks that way," Chase agreed with a nod.

Sophie tsked.

"Great," she muttered sarcastically as she sat up, swinging her legs over the exam table and began to peel the electrodes off her skin.

Chase watched her thoughtfully.

"… I can put you on a low dose of Xanax or Zoloft—" he offered.

"_NO_," she interrupted emphatically.

"You can just try it for a couple of weeks," he pressed, shrugging his shoulders a bit.

"_No meds_," she repeated just as strongly.

"Sophie…" he began, his frustration increasing with her stubbornness.

"If you write me a script, I'm just gonna flush 'em down the toilet everyday so you think I'm taking them," she stated.

"Why are you being so stubborn about this?" he demanded quietly.

One side of her mouth curled up in a lopsided grin.

"You like when I'm stubborn," she said in order to lighten the situation.

"I don't like that you're having chest pain," he told her, ignoring her attempt at levity.

"You said it's not my heart," she reminded him.

He stared into her eyes intently, opening his mouth, about to argue with her once more.

"I can _HANDLE_ it," she insisted, cutting him off before he could say anything.

"Why won't you let me take care of you?" he asked.

"I _AM_ letting you take care of me. But I'm a patient. Don't I have rights?" she asked.

Chase exhaled slowly in exasperation.

"Isn't there an alternative treatment you can prescribe for me, doctor?" she added.

"Don't make a joke out of this," he mumbled.

"I'm not. I'm serious," she replied sincerely.

Chase shot her a disapproving look before reluctantly reaching into the back pocket of his scrubs for a pen and his prescription pad.

"I can write you a script for massage therapy at the hospital once a week," he muttered, scribbling orders on the pad.

"That I'll do," she acquiesced.

She watched him write the orders, tracing his handsome features with her gaze.

"Can you add a mani/ pedi to that?" she joked.

He laughed half- heartedly in response, not looking up from his writing.

"Hey," she said, placing her hand on his arm, forcing him to acknowledge her.

"Stop worrying about me, ok?" she told him.

"What if I told you to stop worrying about me?" he asked her, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly.

She shrugged. "I'd ignore you."

"Which is _EXACTLY_ what I'm going to do when you tell me not to worry about you," he stated firmly.

She smiled fondly at him.

"I'm glad," she said.

* * *

Some time later that night, House and Cuddy were sitting on their couch at home, their legs propped up and crossed on the coffee table, watching a DVRed episode of "_Prescription Passion,"_ sharing a large bowl of caramel coated popcorn that Cuddy had made for both of them.

"So do you feel pregnant yet?" House asked her, shoving a handful of popcorn in his mouth.

"Stop it," she chided, licking the caramel off her fingers.

"You know that after a D & C, your chances of pregnancy increase," House pointed out as he chewed.

"They can also _DECREASE_," she reminded him.

"Not with my super sperm," he boasted, taking a swig from a can of Coke that Cuddy had given him.

"Yes, I forgot. We saw little capes and utility belts on your sperm under the microscope when you went to the fertility clinic," she snarked.

House eyed her contemplatively as she popped a few more pieces of caramel popcorn in her mouth.

"And by the way you're shoveling in that popcorn, you're ovulating right now," he observed, taking another generous handful for himself.

"I don't know why you think my sugar craving is an exact science," she scoffed.

"Hasn't failed me yet," he said with a smirk, shoving the popcorn in his face.

"Well I'm not taking a pregnancy test. We just had sex—" she began.

"I don't mean now," he managed to say with a mouthful of popcorn.

Cuddy arched her eyebrow, amused.

"…But you _DO_ have a date in mind," she said, knowing him all too well.

House nodded. "Cameron's wedding," he declared.

"That's in two weeks," she said. "Don't you think that's a little too soon?"

"Nope. Two weeks is plenty of time to cook up a bun in your oven."

"You really think I'm pregnant from one shot?" she said, fighting a grin.

"Yep," he stated firmly.

Unable to hold back her smile any longer, she turned towards him, propping her bent knee up on the couch.

"Care to make it interesting?" she asked.

"_How_ interesting?" he asked, intrigued.

"If I'm pregnant… I will give you an I.O.U. for sex in my office on my desk again…" she said.

House smiled knowingly. "I _KNEW_ you were full of crap when you said that was a one time event."

"And if I'm _NOT_ pregnant, you have to catch up on all your charting, insurance paperwork and Clinic duty," she added.

House paused for a moment, thinking to himself that if by some chance she wasn't pregnant, he could always make Foreman, Thirteen or even Sophie do the paperwork work for him.

"And you _CAN'T_ pawn it off on your team or Sophie," she stated, knowing exactly what he was thinking.

House smirked.

"Doesn't matter. You're pregnant," he said with a shrug.

"Do we have a bet?" she asked, holding her hand out for him to shake.

He looked down at her hand for a minute and then back up at her face.

He snorted and shook her hand.

"Now turn around and put your legs up," he told her.

"I thought you had super sperm," she teased.

"Gravity's not just a good idea. It's the law," he replied.

She laughed out loud, turning around on the couch, pressing her ass up to the back cushion as she lifted her legs in the air, resting the backs of her thighs against the couch.

It took all the resolve in House's body to not burst out laughing at the sight of Cuddy upside down still trying to see the TV.

"Hungry?" he asked.

She nodded and opened her mouth, sticking out her tongue, to which he placed a single piece of caramel popcorn on it.

* * *

**THE NEXT DAY. SATURDAY MORNING.**

At around 10:00 that morning, Chase was sitting at the glass table on his and Sophie's backyard deck, reading the paper and nursing a cup of coffee he had made that morning when his cell phone rang.

He glanced at his caller ID, which read "**WILSON**."

"Hey, what's up?" he asked into the phone.

"Not much. Sophie around?" Wilson asked on the other end.

"She's still asleep," Chase replied.

"…It's ten AM. She never sleeps this late," Wilson remarked, a bit surprised.

Chase paused, letting out a breath, knowing that Wilson wasn't going to be happy with what he was about to tell him.

"Sophie… had some chest pain last night," he said in the voice he reserved for telling the family members of his patients information.

"_WHAT_?! Is she ok?!" Wilson demanded nervously.

"She's fine. I did an EKG in the ER. It was just an anxiety attack," he assured Wilson as calmly as he could.

"Are you sure?" Wilson asked, still worried.

"Yes. I did it twice," Chase replied confidently.

"This is her second one," Wilson pointed out.

"I know," Chase said morosely.

"Did you give her anything?" Wilson asked.

"She refuses to take any meds," Chase replied.

The two men said nothing for a moment, each wrapped up in their own thoughts.

"…Smushing 'em up in her oatmeal would be wrong, right?" Chase asked half- jokingly, breaking the silence over the line.

Wilson exhaled. "House wouldn't think so… but if you want to marry her and not violate the Hippocratic Oath, then… yeah," he replied.

"…I made her weekly appointments with the hospital masseuse," Chase mumbled.

"Well, that's… something," Wilson felt obligated to say.

There was another silence between them for a few more seconds.

"Do you have any idea what set it off?" Wilson finally asked.

"She found out that Cameron's pregnant… and she's jealous that I can walk," Chase replied softly.

Wilson furrowed his brow on the other end, saying nothing, as he tried to find some common link between the two things that Chase just told him.

"They fixed me," Chase explained, sensing his confusion.

Chase's words hit Wilson like a brick wall.

"…And they can't fix her," he said softly.

"…Did you want me to wake her… or just leave a message?" Chase asked.

"… Just tell her that I called," Wilson said after another pause.

"Ok," Chase replied.

After hanging up, Wilson held his cell phone to his lips, hating himself.

He knew now that there was no way in hell that he could tell Sophie that he didn't think that he'd be able to handle attending her wedding.

* * *

At around the same time, Cuddy smiled lazily in bed as House scooted up behind her, pressing his morning erection against her backside as he reached up to fondle her breast over one of House's vintage t- shirts that she wore to bed last night.

"Mmm…" she moaned happily, stretching like a cat as he touched her.

"Feel like evening up the odds?" he asked eagerly.

"That's cheating," she chided playfully.

"You gotta be competitive if you wanna win," he told her, finding the hem of the t- shirt and caressing her abdomen.

"And if we do it everyday, your sperm won't be potent enough," she reminded him.

"Killjoy," he grunted.

She chuckled and turned around to face him, wrapping her arms around his neck, rolling both of them over so she was lying on top of him.

"We could just practice..." she suggested nonchalantly.

House arched his eyebrow. "We could do that…"

But as Cuddy brushed her lips against his, House's cell phone beeped on the night-stand next to them. Cuddy dropped her head onto his chest at the sound while House reached over to the phone in great annoyance.

"What?!" House snapped into the phone.

"Why would someone adamantly refuse to take anti- anxiety meds?" Chase asked on the other end, undeterred by House's brusque demeanor.

House snorted in reply, cursing himself that he was unable to tear away from Chase's question.

"Is this a real patient or an imaginary one?" he asked.

"Real," Chase replied.

"Either they're in denial about needing the meds or they _DID_ need the meds at one point, took 'em and had a bad response to them," House stated flatly.

"… Yeah, that's what I thought," Chase mumbled before hanging up.

* * *

Chase stroked his chin in contemplation, thinking about his conversation with House, when he heard the sliding door open behind him.

"Enjoying the weather?" Sophie asked him as she stepped out into the sunlight on the deck.

"Hey sleepyhead," he said with a smile, holding out his arm to her.

"You could've woken me up," she told him as she took a seat on his lap.

"Nah, you were tired," he said, wrapping his arm around her hip and kissing her.

"You feeling better?" Chase asked as Sophie brushed a stray lock of hair out of his eyes.

"Yeah. A lot better," she replied with a smile.

Chase nodded, his smile falling a bit.

"What?" Sophie asked.

Chase rubbed the outside of her thigh, preparing himself to ask the question that had been on his mind since he spoke with House.

"Which anti- depressants were you on after your surgery?" he asked gently.

At this, a slow smile crept across Sophie's lips.

"House should've never fired you," she commented, impressed that he had figured it out.

Chase smiled back in return, waiting patiently for her real response.

"Zoloft," she finally said in a small, embarrassed voice.

Chase nodded, still caressing her thigh with his thumb.

"I was only on it for a couple of months—" she added quickly.

"You have nothing to be ashamed of," he said, using the same gentle tone.

She laughed slightly, looking down at her lap.

"What happened to you on the meds?" he asked.

She exhaled. "…I was tired all the time, but I couldn't sleep. And I never felt like eating… so I stopped taking them."

"You made the right choice," he told her.

She shrugged without a response.

"Listen, we don't have to go to Cameron's wedding—" Chase began.

"That's ridiculous," she interrupted him flatly.

"Soph, you had an anxiety attack because you found out that Cameron's pregnant. I'm not gonna purposely put you in a situation where you can have another one," he insisted.

"I can't avoid every pregnant woman for the rest of my life," she argued, finally looking back up at him.

"…And I didn't have chest pain because of Cameron…" she added.

Chase tilted his head a bit, confused, as she avoided his gaze once again.

"…I just… don't want you to look back on your life and think that you made a huge mistake by marrying me," she admitted.

At this, he touched her chin so she would meet his eyes, lightly caressing her jawline with his fingertips.

"The second best day of my life was when you walked into it…" he began.

"…Because the _BEST_ day of my life is gonna be when you marry me," he finished.

"You're good," she said, a smile tugging at her lips.

"I know," he replied, returning her smile with one of his own.

TBC…


	49. Chapter 48

**HI EVERYONE!**

**WE'RE DOING A TIME JUMP TO THE WEEKEND OF SOPHIE'S BIRTHDAY AND CAMERON'S WEDDING IN PARIS.**

**THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL POSTS!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :-) **

* * *

**CHAPTER 48: Please read and comment.**

**SATURDAY, JULY 7**

**TWO WEEKS LATER:**

At around eight that Saturday morning, Cuddy woke up in an incredibly sumptuous king size bed in the Georges Cinq hotel in Paris. She stretched and smiled as the Egyptian cotton sheets caressed her bare skin.

She, House, Chase and Sophie had all arrived in Paris the night before after flying first class for seven hours. After a light supper in a nearby outdoor café along the Rue Pierre Charron, they had returned to the hotel and retired to their separate rooms.

Her eyes still closed, Cuddy reached over for House in the bed, but all she felt was the cool sheet.

"Over here," he said from the other side of the bed.

She opened her eyes and looked over her shoulder.

House was sitting on the bed next to her, still wearing the t- shirt and boxers he wore last night to bed.

"You're up early," she commented, a bit surprised, rubbing the top of his thigh.

"Got work to do," he replied.

With that, he presented her with a sealed white and blue bag that read:

**"ACCUTEST HCG. PROPERTY OF PRINCETON PLAINSBORO TEACHING HOSPITAL."**

"You stole a pregnancy test from the Clinic?" she asked, arching her eyebrow at him.

"It's better than an ept you'd buy in a Walgreens, and it only takes one minute," he shrugged.

She chuckled, shaking her head. "I don't know why I'm surprised."

"Your pee is freshest in the morning," he told her, ignoring her attempt at deflection.

She stared at him in amusement.

"You're _THAT_ sure of yourself," she stated in disbelief.

"You winced when I squeezed your breasts last night, and then you shoved me away because you were exhausted. Breast tenderness plus fatigue equals pregnancy," he said simply.

"OR I could be getting my period and was just tired from the seven hour flight," she argued.

"You're pregnant," he said confidently.

Cuddy exhaled through her nose.

"You're not gonna give up, are you?" she asked.

"Hey, this is important. There's an I.O.U. for desk sex on the line," he reminded her.

Rolling her eyes at him, she reluctantly took the pregnancy kit from him, climbed out of the bed and headed towards their hotel room's elegant marble bathroom.

House traced her figure with his eyes from behind, the satin nightie she wore to bed last night hugging her supple curves as she slipped into the bathroom and closed the door behind her.

He shifted his position on the bed, leaning his back against the pillow and headboard as he grabbed the leather bound guest room guide in the hotel of the night- stand and started flipping through it absentmindedly.

But suddenly, he stopped, his eye catching one particular page.

He stared at it for a moment, a soft smile forming on his face.

* * *

Over a minute late, Cuddy came out of the bathroom.

Her face was completely unreadable.

"So?" House demanded impatiently.

She kept her eyes on him, her expression not changing in the slightest.

House narrowed his eyes, trying very hard to read her face.

But he couldn't.

She then calmly walked over to the vintage desk in their hotel room, took the complimentary pad and pen, scribbled something on the top page, ripped it off and handed it to House.

House stared at her for a second before focusing on the paper in front of him, the top of the page displaying "_Georges V Hotel, Paris,_" in elegant embossed script:

**"I.O.U.:**

**SEX ON MY DESK**

**DR. LISA CUDDY."**

A slow grin formed on House's face. He gazed up at her.

"Told ya," he said.

"You sure did," she said, a thousand watt smile on her face.

He pulled her down to the bed on top of him, wrapped his arms around her and engulfed her lips in a passionate kiss.

"Admit it, you love it when I'm right," he said against her mouth.

"_THIS_ time, I'll admit it," she said.

"You think the hotel has a copy machine?" he asked her, holding up the I.O.U she had written him.

She laughed out loud. "I'm sure you'll find one before the end of the trip."

As they kissed again, House reached over to the night stand for the hotel phone.

"You're actually calling down to the front desk to see if they have a copier _NOW_?" she asked him.

"Be quiet, preggo," he told her affectionately as he pressed the speed dial for the Concierge's desk.

She snorted as she rested her head on his chest, scooting her hand underneath his t- shirt and rubbing his stomach, closing her eyes happily, thinking about the tiny life growing inside her.

"…Yes, This is Dr. Greg House in room 1026. Who can I speak to about arranging a wedding ceremony?" House asked into the phone.

Cuddy's eyes immediately flew open upon hearing this.

She raised her head off his chest and stared at him in shock.

"For tonight," House said into the phone, well aware of the way Cuddy was staring at him, but ignoring it.

"…Nothing extravagant. Bride, groom, couple witnesses, some type of official," House continued casually with a shrug.

"Oh, and flowers. Roses, right?" House asked Cuddy, finally turning to her for some type of response.

But all Cuddy could do was stare at him, as if she was a deer caught in headlights, her jaw slacked open just a little.

House tilted his head a bit, raising his eyes, waiting for her to say something.

She eventually nodded slowly, unable to form words.

"The groom is Dr. Gregory House and the bride is Dr. Lisa Cuddy," House said into the phone, fully enjoying Cuddy's stunned reaction.

"Sounds great. We'll be there at seven- thirty," House said, before hanging up the phone.

He then turned back towards her, now wrapping both arms around her.

"I'm making you my wife at seven- thirty tonight in the 'Foyer Chantilly,'" he told her.

"… I…" she stammered.

"I think '_Foyer Chantilly_,' is their fancy name for hallway with the marble staircase that we passed on our way to our room last night, but…" he said, trailing off, unable to keep the smile off his face any longer.

Cuddy suddenly became aware of the fact that she was shaking her head.

"...Are you doing this because I'm pregnant--" she finally asked.

"No," he interrupted her, his bright blue eyes sparkling.

"… I don't have anything to wear except for the dress for Cameron's wedding tomorrow night," she said, still stammering.

House smirked.

"Looks like you're going shopping today," he replied.

* * *

At around the same time, Sophie woke up in her and Chase's equally sumptuous king size bed in their hotel room to the feeling of Chase kissing the back of her neck and caressing her stomach from behind her.

"Good morning," she said with a lazy smile.

"Happy birthday, baby," he murmured against her ear.

"Thank you," she replied, turning around to face him, pulling him closer to her and hooking her leg over his hip.

They kissed softly as Chase scooted his hand under her cotton camisole, caressing the soft skin on her back.

"I have a wonderful day planned," he said against her lips as they kissed.

"Mmm?"

"…Breakfast on the balcony… then off to see the sites…" he said, between kisses as he rolled her over onto her back, nestling his body between her legs.

She arched back happily as he started to trail his lips down her neck.

"The Eiffel Tower… the Louvre… some shopping if you like…" he continued in a quiet tone.

"Mmm hmm," she said, her voice still raspy from sleep.

He kissed her collarbone towards the hollow at the base of her throat.

"…And then we're going to Versailles…" he said against her skin.

She inhaled slightly as his lips journeyed to the curve of her breast.

"Then when we come back… you have a spa appointment… with a massage," he said.

"You're spoiling me," she said coyly.

"It's your birthday. You're _supposed_ to be spoiled," he replied, lifting her camisole and kissing her stomach.

"… And tonight... a dinner cruise around the Seine," he finished, closing his eyes as he nuzzled her abdomen.

"I love how romantic you are," she told him, luxuriously running her fingers through his hair.

He flashed her a dazzling smile as he scooted back up towards her lips, giving her a sweet kiss.

"I can't wait to be your wife," she whispered.

"Then let's not wait," he said back, matching her soft tone.

"Mmm?" she asked, only vaguely aware of what he had said as she was still lost in the haze of his kisses and touch.

"Let's get married tonight," he clarified.

She broke off the kiss, staring at him, not sure that she had heard him correctly. He brushed away a stray lock of her hair out of her face.

"I don't want to wait three more months to be your husband," he told her sincerely.

She smiled at him, caressing the thin layer of scruff on his cheek as her heart filled with love at his confession.

"Baby…" she began lovingly.

"We can still go to Antigua for our honeymoon," he said, knowing that she was about to reject his idea.

"But my family's not here," she said gently.

"We'll call them after," he said, kissing her jawline, his hands roaming everywhere over her body, his fingertips grazing the outer curve of her breast, then over her hip to her ass.

"And… I want you… to see me in my dress," she said haltingly, her eyes fluttering closed as her insides tingling again at his ministrations.

"I'm sure it's beautiful," he murmured against her skin.

"And I want you to see what I got to wear for our wedding night," she added.

At this, he reluctantly stopped kissing her face, his mouth contorted into a crooked smile.

"…Ok," he acquiesced.

She giggled and flipped him over, straddling him as she sat up. She quickly removed her camisole over her head and tossed it onto the floor of their hotel room, exposing her breasts, tousling her hair and pouting her lips in an overly exaggerated sexy manner for him around her shoulders.

He laughed at her antics. "It's _YOUR_ birthday, remember? I'm supposed to be giving you whatever _YOU_ want."

She bit her lip as she grinned at him.

"You are," she replied.

He sat up, and captured her mouth in a hot, passionate kiss.

But before they could go any further, Chase's cell phone rang on the night- stand next to him.

He groaned in frustration as he reached over for it.

"You _CAN'T_ be serious," she told him flatly.

"Could be important," he told her.

"I'm on top of you naked from the waist up. Can you think of anything more important that that?" she asked him wryly.

"It's House," Chase commented, narrowing his eyes at the Caller ID on his phone.

She blinked her eyes twice.

"You think he's got a case that he suddenly needs your input on? I hope you speak French," she snarked.

He tickled her belly before answering the phone.

"This is Chase," he said as Sophie lowered herself onto him, licking his neck to break his concentration.

"You guys busy at seven- thirty tonight?" House asked on the other end of the line.

"… We're supposed to go on a dinner cruise at eight- thirty. Why? You wanna go for drinks or something?" Chase said.

"I'm marrying your boss tonight at seven- thirty on that fancy staircase in the hotel. We need witnesses," House replied nonchalantly.

Chase's jaw slacked open.

"Uh…" was all he could say.

Sophie looked up from his neck, staring at Chase, who was obviously at a loss for words.

"What?" she asked him.

"Shouldn't be a long ceremony. You'll have plenty of time to make your boat ride," House said.

"… Ok," Chase said, still stymied.

"Great," House said before hanging up.

Chase slowly hung up the phone, his expression still blank.

"What?" Sophie repeated.

"...House and Cuddy are getting married tonight," Chase finally said.

TBC…


	50. Chapter 49

**HI EVERYONE!**

**SORRY IT'S BEEN SO LONG. RL HAS BEEN RIDICULOUSLY HECTIC.**

**BUT HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER!**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :D **

* * *

**CHAPTER 49: Please read and comment.**

Later that afternoon, Sophie and Chase were strolling around the fountains at the Palace at Versailles, eleven miles from Paris, holding hands. A warm summer breeze drifted along the air as other tourists admired the stunning architecture and majestic gardens, taking pictures of the elaborate scene around them.

For most of the day, Sophie had been relatively quiet.

She and Chase had spent the earlier part of the day at several of the city's famous historical sites, including the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Place de la Concorde and the Arc de Triomphe.

They had also browsed through some of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées finer shops together. Chase had told Sophie that he would buy her anything that she wanted for her birthday, but Sophie had said that she had just wanted to browse.

"Did you know that Louis XIV's servants used to turn on the fountains when he would walk by them and then turn them off after he would walk past them?" Chase said as they walked around one of the fountains.

"Mmm…" she replied.

"…So my plan to impress you with my knowledge of French history isn't working?" Chase quipped playfully, bumping her gently with his elbow.

Sophie gave him a sidelong glance and laughed a little.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"Are you tired? Do you want to go back to the hotel?" he asked.

"No, I'm fine," she told him.

Chase raised his eyebrows ever so slightly, waiting for her to expand on her answer. She looked away from his gaze and focused her attention on the fountain in front of them.

"It's just very calming being here," she finally said.

Chase's expression became slightly incredulous.

"You just lied right to my face," he stated.

She turned back towards him with a sheepish glance.

"Guess I'd better get back to the poker table. I'm losing my skills," she joked half- heartedly.

Chase touched her shoulder, gently turning her around to face him.

"What's wrong?" he asked with concern.

She shrugged, not really wanting to answer the question. But she knew that Chase wouldn't let it go if she didn't tell him what had been on her mind since early that morning.

"…I've just been thinking why House would propose to Cuddy all of a sudden," she confessed.

Chase turned down his lower lip. He had to admit that he was surprised when House had called them that morning in their hotel room with the news that he and Cuddy were getting married that night.

But he had no idea that Sophie had been dwelling on it all day.

"Maybe it wasn't all of a sudden. Maybe he planned it awhile ago," Chase offered.

"If he had planned it a while ago, my brother would be here," Sophie mumbled.

"Maybe that's why he did it," Chase mused.

Sophie narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean?"

"Maybe he asked Cuddy to marry him tonight to make Wilson come to his senses about not being here for Cameron's wedding," Chase explained.

Sophie just stared at him for a moment.

Then a curt laugh escaped her lips.

"What? You don't think House would do something like that?" Chase asked her.

"House would definitely do something like that, but you really don't understand why Jimmy didn't want to come?" she countered.

"What's does Cameron's marriage have to do with him?" Chase demanded lightly.

"His fiancée just dumped him! If that happened to me, I wouldn't want to go to a wedding either," Sophie pointed out.

"So… by that logic, if he didn't want to come to OUR wedding, that'd be fine?" Chase asked.

Sophie tsked. "That's not gonna happen. He's my brother," she said dismissively.

"Did he ever send back the response card?" Chase asked.

At this, Sophie paused, realizing that he hadn't.

But Sophie would never go against her own brother.

"We just sent out the invitations last week. Just because he didn't sent it back yet—" she began.

"Did he call you to tell you he was coming?" Chase interrupted insistently.

Once again, Sophie had no response for a moment.

"Did he even call you to wish you a happy birthday today?" Chase added.

* * *

At around the same time, back in Princeton, Wilson was in his office, having decided to get some work done that Saturday afternoon while the hospital was relatively quiet.

His cell phone chimed on his desk as he was plowing through the pile of paperwork that had been accumulating on his desk. He grabbed the phone, still focused on his work without looking at the caller ID.

"Hello?" he said into the phone, a bit distracted.

"Hey, did you forget something?" Sophie teased him on the other end.

Wilson smiled upon hearing her voice.

"Hey, little So. Happy birthday," he told her.

"Thought you forgot about me," she joked.

"Of course I didn't. How's Paris?"

"Beautiful. We're actually at Versailles now," she said.

"Ah, the palace of the Sun King," he said in a light, airy voice.

She laughed. "This place is gorgeous. It's good to be the king."

He chuckled in response.

She waited for him to ask her more questions about their trip and what she and Chase had seen that day.

But instead, an uncomfortable silence hung in the air between them over the phone.

"How's the weather?" Wilson finally asked after a few moments.

Sophie bit her lip, having a distinct feeling of dread that Chase was right.

"…Are you coming to my wedding?" she asked him.

Wilson inhaled through his nose, guilt starting to spread through him.

But he just couldn't bring himself to tell her the truth.

"I know. I didn't send back the response card yet—" he began.

"You didn't even call me when you got the invitation. And you didn't call me all day today. You're _avoiding_ me," she interrupted.

He paused again, the guilt starting to overwhelm him.

"…I really didn't want to talk about this over the phone…" he said meekly.

Chase felt a pang in his heart as he watched a forlorn expression form on Sophie's lovely features.

"_SON OF A BITCH_," Chase cursed Wilson silently to himself as he hardened his jaw and shook his head slightly.

"You don't want to come to my wedding?" she asked, barely above a whisper.

"We were supposed to get married the same weekend, Soph. In the same place—" Wilson said in defense of his actions.

"I'm your _SISTER_!!" she stated angrily, finding her voice again.

"I know. And I feel awful—"

"You _SHOULD_," she snapped.

Neither of them said anything for a moment. Chase threaded his fingers through hers and squeezed her hand supportively.

But Sophie didn't squeeze his fingers back.

"Sophie, I'm so sorry," Wilson finally said sincerely.

"I _HATE_ you," she said in a raspy, hard voice.

Chase's jaw dropped.

And so did Wilson's on the other end of the line.

"Sophie…" Wilson said, completely stunned.

But before Wilson could say anything else to her, she closed her cell phone and shoved it back in the pocket of her shorts.

She tried to control her lower lip from quivering, holding back the tears that were threatening to escape.

But she was losing the battle.

"Well, you were right," she managed to say.

Chase frowned.

"I didn't want to be," he told her softly.

She laughed sheepishly, brushing a tear carelessly off her cheek.

He pulled her closer to him, holding her tight against him.

"I didn't want to ruin our day," she said against his chest.

"You didn't," he reassured her, rubbing her back.

* * *

**LATER THAT EVENING.**

**7:20 PM**

Sophie was in Cuddy and House's luxurious hotel room back at the _Georges V_, helping her get ready for her wedding.

Sophie was still upset about the conversation she had earlier with Wilson. He had called her cell phone several times, but she had refused to answer the call.

But at the moment, she was all smiles, refusing to ruin Cuddy's special night.

Cuddy was standing in front of the full- length vintage style mirror, putting on a pair of delicate chandelier earrings she had found earlier that day in a shop near the hotel, while Sophie fluffed out the back of her dress, a soft gold- toned slim, ruched A-line gown with soft sweetheart neckline and an asymmetrical skirt.

The dress framed Cuddy's slim, yet curvy figure perfectly, tastefully displaying her cleavage, while the color lit up her entire face.

"Lisa, this dress is _GORGEOUS_! How did you find this in one day?" Sophie asked her.

"I told the concierge down at the desk that I just got engaged and that I needed to find a place that would sell me a wedding dress by tonight. She took care of the rest," Cuddy replied, critically eyeing her hair, which she had fashioned into an elegant half- up do with pins.

"You think I should wear my hair half- up or all up?" Cuddy asked, turning her head from side to side.

Sophie stood up straight and smiled at her, smoothing out her black chiffon A-line tea-length dress, the V-neckline and gathered cross-over empire bodice accenting her curves.

Cuddy was positively glowing.

"You're absolutely stunning," she declared sincerely.

Cuddy turned around to face her, grabbing her hands and squeezing them.

"…I'm nervous," she admitted with a tiny laugh.

Sophie laughed along with her, squeezing her hand back.

"I didn't think I would be, but I am," Cuddy added.

"I'm sure he's nervous, too," Sophie reassured her.

Cuddy grinned, the excitement and anticipation inside her of getting married to Greg House in a few minutes almost bubbling over.

But Sophie's grin morphed into a soft, almost melancholy smile.

"You're pregnant, aren't you?" Sophie asked.

At first, Cuddy's grin faded as she was taken aback at the question.

Seeing the angst in Sophie's eyes, Cuddy honestly didn't know how to respond.

Without saying anything else, Sophie forced a wider smile and gave Cuddy a hug, ignoring the now all- too familiar pain spreading throughout her chest.

* * *

At around the same time, House was standing by the staircase, handsomely dressed in a light grey Hugo Boss suit, a crisp sky blue shirt and a charcoal silk tie in the '_Foyer Chantilly_,' fidgeting nervously, constantly glancing at his watch.

The Foyer was tastefully adorned with simple arrangements of white, peach and pink roses at House's request.

"Where the hell is she already?" House muttered.

Chase smirked next to him. "It's still early," he reminded him.

"She takes forever to get ready," House said with a snort.

"What are you so nervous about?" Chase asked, amused at how uncomfortable House was at the moment.

"I'm not nervous," he said.

"Yeah, right," Chase muttered.

House glanced over at him. Dressed in an olive green suit, a cream colored shirt and tie, Chase seemed distracted.

"Don't stand so close to me. People will think you and I are getting married," House said.

"You could do worse," Chase snarked without missing a beat.

House couldn't help but smile a little at that.

A silence passed over the two men for a few moments. Chase glanced down at House's cane, noticing that House didn't seem to be leaning on it as much as he used to.

"How was your first laser treatment at NYU?" Chase asked.

"Boring, like you said," House replied.

Chase nodded.

"How's the pain?" he asked carefully.

"It took the edge off," House replied with a shrug.

"…You going back?" Chase asked, still hesitant.

"…He wants me to come back in a month," House said, looking anywhere but at Chase.

"Keeping the pain journal's annoying," he added.

Chase nodded again, knowing that this was the most House would ever reveal about his participation in the LLLT Clinical trial.

House glanced at Chase again, almost unable to do so, while Chase absentmindedly looked around at the other hotel guests passing by in the foyer.

"I never… thanked you for calling Eng for me," House mumbled under his breath.

Chase sharply turned his head towards House, completely stunned.

"I'm not thanking you _NOW_. I'm just saying that I never did," House quickly added.

At this, Chase smiled.

"Duly noted," he said.

* * *

A few minutes later, House was shaking hands with the _Officier de l'état civil_ as Cuddy and Sophie rounded the corner of the hallway.

House felt Chase elbow him in the ribs.

"House…" Chase said, his voice almost hypnotic, unable to take his eyes off the two women as they came towards them.

"What?" House said in annoyance, turning towards Chase.

And then House saw Cuddy.

And his jaw dropped.

Cuddy was carrying a tiny bouquet of white roses as she and Sophie came closer to them.

House felt an actual lump form in his throat at the sight of her.

Cuddy smiled at his reaction as she reached him.

"Guess you like my dress," she said coyly, the sparkle of her earrings and her dress illuminating her face even more so.

House swallowed.

"Why do you say that?" he managed to say.

"Because I stunned you into silence," she replied, her entire face smiling.

House gazed into her soft blue- grey eyes, drowning in them.

"It's not the dress," he told her.

TBC…

* * *

**TO SEE PICTURES OF CUDDY'S GOWN AND SOPHIE'S DRESS, PASTE THE FOLLOWING LINKS INTO THE URL BAR ABOVE:**

CUDDY'S WEDDING GOWN: .?page=2&style=A3419

SOPHIE'S DRESS: .com/Jim-Hjelm-Occasions/Bridesmaid/Additional/Style-5813

:)


	51. Chapter 50

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS SO MUCH FOR BEING SO PATIENT, FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL POSTS!**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :D**

**AND FOR ANYONE WHO HASN'T SEEN CUDDY'S WEDDING GOWN OR SOPHIE'S DRESS, THEY'RE IN MY PROFILE. **

**JUST PASTE THE LINKS PROVIDED INTO THE URL FIELD AT THE TOP.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 50: Please read and comment.**

By now, a crowd of hotel guests and others had gathered around House, Cuddy, Chase and Sophie by the grand staircase in the _Foyer Chantilly_ in the Georges V hotel.

Cuddy had given her small bouquet of roses to Sophie to hold as she and House turned towards the _Officier de l'état civil_ who cordially smiled at each of them before beginning the ceremony.

"We gather today here in the presence of friends to celebrate the love which Lisa and Greg have for each other, to give social recognition to their decision to commit their lives and accept each other completely, to learn how to help and understand each other, to build a family, and together, to travel through life," the civil official said in flawless English with just a hint of French inflection in his voice.

The _Officier_ then turned to Lisa with a lopsided grin on his face.

"Greg told me to keep it short," he added.

Cuddy laughed, flashing a thousand- watt smile as the crowd gathered around them laughed along with her. House couldn't help but chuckle himself.

From her position at Cuddy's side, Sophie held onto Lisa's small bouquet of roses as she watched House take Cuddy's hand, threading his fingers lightly through hers, smiling softly, almost shyly, at Cuddy.

Sophie then glanced at Chase, who had been gazing at her the entire time from his position at House's side, unable to take his eyes off her.

Something about the way he was tracing her face and figure with his striking aquamarine eyes made her blush.

He smiled softly as Sophie looked down at the floor and then back up at the bride and groom, still feeling Chase's gaze on her.

It made her feel warm all over.

But she still couldn't shake the heavy melancholy weighing down her heart.

"Greg, do you choose Lisa to be your wife, to love and respect you in your successes and in your failures, to care for you in sickness and in health, to nurture you, and to grow with you throughout the seasons of life?"

House paused, as he mulled over the _Officier's_ words in his mind.

Cuddy raised her eyebrows ever so slightly, not expecting his silence at this very moment.

At this, Chase nudged House roughly with his elbow.

House fell forward just a bit, their antics causing a collective titter from the crowd.

"I do," House said as he regained his balance, shooting Chase an annoyed glare.

"What? You weren't saying anything!" Chase said in his defense, his eyes wide, shrugging his shoulders up towards his ears.

Cuddy laughed again as the crowd laughed along with her. Chase winked at Sophie after House turned around, making her smile.

"Lisa, do you choose Greg to be your husband, to love and respect you in your successes and in your failures, to care for you in sickness and in health, to nurture you, and to grow with you throughout the seasons of life?"

"I do," she said promptly, raising her eyebrow at House.

House rolled his eyes.

"Showoff," he declared.

"Do we have the rings?" the _Officier_ asked Chase, unable to keep the grin off his own face.

Upon hearing this, Cuddy felt a wave of panic rush through her.

She had been gone all afternoon shopping for her wedding dress and for shoes. She and House had barely seen each other all day and had not gone shopping for wedding rings.

But before she could say anything, Chase dug into the inside pocket of his suit jacket and produced a small white leather ring box. He took the two plain yellow gold wedding bands that were nestled inside them and handed them to the Officier.

Cuddy was completely stunned as the Officier handed her the larger of the two gold wedding bands to place on House's finger at the appropriate time.

"… When did you get these?" Cuddy asked, her eyes still wide in awe.

"This afternoon," he replied simply, his own bright blue eyes shimmering.

Her heart hammered in her chest wildly, still amazed at how after twenty years that he could still surprise her.

House placed the ring on the ring finger of her left hand. She tried to calm down as she did the same to him.

"By the power vested in me by the Région Parisienne, I now pronounce you husband and wife," the _Officier_ stated.

House nodded at the Officier and turned to Cuddy.

But as Cuddy leaned forward to receive her first kiss from him as his wife, House didn't make a move.

By now, scattered conspiratorial whispers could be heard in the crowd around them.

Sophie arched her eyebrow at Chase, confused as to why House was just standing there. Chase narrowed his eyes, just as confused as she was.

"…I think we're supposed to kiss now," Cuddy said to House.

House shrugged casually.

But the mischievous gleam in his eye betrayed him.  "Yeah, but the audience is expecting that. Maybe we should shake things up a little," he said to her.

"You're _NOT_ grabbing my ass," she stated to him, a smile tugging at her lips.

He smirked at her.

"Killjoy," he muttered through a grin.

He then placed both his hands on her cheeks, stroking her skin delicately with his thumb before bending down to kiss her.

The kiss was soft and sweet, almost innocent.

And as the crowd surrounding them applauded while he lovingly brushed his lips against hers over and over again, Cuddy realized that House had surprised her twice that night.

* * *

A short time later, after the impromptu crowd had dispersed, House, Cuddy, Chase and Sophie were in the hotel's outdoor courtyard, where a small private area had been roped off for them at House's request.

There were two white soft small couches placed in front of a long low table adorned with a white table cloth and peach rose petals, set with four champagne flutes, a bottle of Moet, and platters of various fruits, pastries and chocolates. House and Cuddy sat together on one couch together while Chase and Sophie sat on the other, enjoying the champagne and the treats in front of them.

Chase's caressed Sophie's bare knee lightly, his fingertips drifting to the inside of her lower thigh. She gave him a demure glance, his touch exciting her.

But Sophie's attention was drawn away from Chase when Cuddy picked up her glass of champagne and took a sip, surprised that she would drink while pregnant.

House was equally surprised.

"It's just one sip," Cuddy reassured them, knowing what was on their minds.

House and Sophie's surprised expressions remained as they exchanged glances.

"Last time you wouldn't touch a drop," House reminded her.

"Well… I guess I'm feeling more relaxed this time around," Cuddy replied with a smile.

At this, Chase's eyes almost popped out of his head as realization dawned on him.

"You're _PREGNANT_?!" he exclaimed.

"Say it louder. I don't think the hookers in the lobby heard you," House snarked.

But Cuddy was too happy at the moment to scold House.

"Yep," she replied.

Chase beamed, got up off the couch and kissed her cheek.

"Congratulations!" he told her happily.

As Chase hugged her, his back facing Sophie, he couldn't see how Sophie's face fell, unable to hide how much it hurt to watch Chase simply wish Cuddy well on her pregnancy.

The all- too familiar pain in her chest began to spread through her torso.

House kept his face neutral, immediately seeing that Sophie was in physical pain and trying to hide it.

He also knew that at the moment, she was wallowing in her own self- pity.

And that when the four of them attended Cameron's wedding tomorrow, it would only make her feel worse, possibly to the point of being clinically depressed.

And he was getting pretty tired of it.

But he said nothing.

Instead, he raised his champagne glass as if prepared to toast their marriage. The other three raised their glasses in kind, waiting for him to speak.

"'To love and respect me in my successes _AND_ in my failures,'" House pontificated, quoting the generic vows that the Officier had made them recite.

Cuddy and Chase lowered their glasses, exchanging an exasperated sigh.

In the meantime, Sophie downed her glass of champagne in one swig, as if it were a shot of hard alcohol.

Chase gave her a sidelong glance, worrying his brow, but he remained silent, not wanting to embarrass her.

"Why would someone promise to respect someone else's failures?" House continued in a rhetorical fashion.

"We didn't write our own vows so we got stuck with whatever was available. Stop analyzing," Cuddy said dismissively.

"I can see respecting someone's successes. But their _FAILURES_?" House went on.

"Just make your point," Chase said, starting to lose patience and knowing that House was actually going somewhere with this.

"_YOU FAILED_," House stated flatly to Sophie, giving her a hard, meaningful look.

Sophie's breath caught in her throat.

Chase and Cuddy froze in horror at House's statement, knowing exactly the message behind it.

"You can't conceive. You'll _NEVER_ be able to conceive," he told Sophie.

"Greg…" Cuddy whispered, horrified at his cruelty towards her.

Chase immediately put his arm protectively around Sophie, who remained still.

"Sophie, don't listen to him," he told her.

"If you failed, there's nothing to respect. Why should Chase respect _YOU_?" House added.

Sophie remained silent, staring right back at House, his harsh words cutting through her like a knife, the pain in her chest overwhelming her.

Chase's face contorted into a menacing expression.

"You son of a—" Chase began angrily.

"You're _bluffing_," Sophie stated to House, interrupting him, her voice full of sudden realization.

Chase and Cuddy's facial expressions changed from horror to surprise and slight confusion at Sophie's interjection.

House tilted his head ever so slightly, the corner of his lip turning upwards at her epiphany.

"Why would I do that?" House asked, his voice just on the edge of sarcasm.

"…Because… you're trying to knock some sense into me," Sophie said as if she was waking from a dream.

"… Make me realize self- worth has _NOTHING_ to do with my reproductive system," she continued.

House shrugged slightly.

"You're hot, you're smart, you're funny, you're a kick- ass poker player…" House stated simply.

"And he's so in love with you that he couldn't wait for your exotic off- site wedding in October to marry you," House added, jutting his chin at Chase.

Sophie turned slowly towards Chase. His face morphed into a gentle smile, his eyes warm and loving.

And he nodded in agreement.

"So…what exactly do you have to feel bad about?" he asked her pointedly.

"… Nothing," Sophie said, barely above a whisper, still looking at Chase, the pain in her chest dissolving as warm, wonderful feelings took over.

Chase leaned closer to her and kissed her softly, caressing her chin with his fingertips, nuzzling her nose with his.

As they kissed, House looked over them, catching the eye of the _Officier_ that married he and Cuddy earlier. The _Officier_ was standing by the velvet rope that the hotel staff had used to section off their area of the courtyard.

House nodded at him and got up, leaving Cuddy alone on the couch.

Chase and Sophie broke off their kiss, curious about House's actions.

Once House reached the rope, the three of them watched House dig into his pocket and pull out an envelope about five inches thick out of the inside pocket of his jacket and quickly hand it to the Officier.

The _Officier_ then handed him a think legal sized manila envelope in return.

Without another word, House turned around and headed back to the couch, his limp decidedly less pronounced and sat back down next to Cuddy as if nothing had happened.

"What was that?" Cuddy asked.

"He married us. I paid him for his services," House replied with a shrug.

"That looked like about 10 G's in that envelope," Sophie commented. "That's how much a civil ceremony costs to get married in Paris?"

"No, that's how much he _CHARGED_ me to have a civil ceremony in Paris," House explained.

Chase scrunched up his face, not understanding the distinction House was trying to make.

But Sophie's lips parted, knowing exactly what House was getting at.

"It's a _hustle_," Sophie stated.

Cuddy sharply turned towards House.

"_WHAT_??" she demanded.

"You need to be a Parisian resident for 40 consecutive day before getting legally married in Paris," House told her.

"So… while you were off buying your dress and other essential accessories, I bought our wedding rings and found someone in City Hall that I could bribe to marry us legally without proof of residency," he said.

Cuddy blinked twice, shocked into silence.

Chase pressed his lips together and looked away, not wanting to show how amusing he found the situation.

Sophie just grinned.

"Relax. We're legally married," House told her, giving her the manila envelope that he had paid off the Officier for.

Cuddy quickly opened up the envelope, her jaw dropping as she scanned over all the necessary legal documentation in front of her.

"_YOU FORGED MY SIGNATURE ON OUR MARRIAGE LICENSE??_" Cuddy exclaimed.

"I'm getting good at it, aren't I?" House asked proudly.

Sophie bit her lip to prevent from bursting out laughing.

"We're getting married again when we get back to Princeton," Cuddy declared in an authoritative voice.

"No good deed goes unpunished. Remember that," House said to Chase.

Chase glanced at his watch. "We should go if we don't want to miss the boat."

Sophie nodded, getting up off the couch with Chase. They both kissed and hugged Cuddy on the cheek congratulating her on her marriage.

As Chase took a few of the chocolates from the trays and wrapped them in a nearby napkin to go, popping one in his mouth, Sophie leaned over and kissed House on the cheek.

"Thanks," she said.

House stared at her for a moment and nodded.

* * *

A few minutes after Chase and Sophie left to catch their dinner cruise around the Seine, House and Cuddy were enjoying some of the delicious pastries, fruit and chocolate in front of them.

"That was really nice what you did for Sophie," Cuddy commented.

"Don't be so impressed. I just didn't want to have to write her a script for Zoloft in the middle of Cameron's wedding," House shrugged.

"I see," Cuddy said, unconvinced.

"If she's too _emo_ to do her job, then I'll have to do my own charting in the Clinic. Trust me when I tell you that my motives are purely selfish," House insisted.

Cuddy grinned. "If you say so," she said with a light shrug.

House smirked and took another swig of champagne as Cuddy popped a piece of chocolate covered pineapple in her mouth.

But as she ate, his smirk faded while he mulled over Sophie's reactions earlier that evening.

"I didn't fix her," House said in a low, gruff voice, gazing at the various desserts in front of him.

"You _HELPED_ her," Cuddy replied.

"She'll probably need some anti- depressants in the long run," House pointed out.

Cuddy nodded. "She might."

"…And if Chase's pain comes back—" he continued.

"They have each other," she reassured him gently, placing her hand on his leg.

House met her eyes with a somber expression.

"For now," he said.

"… You don't think they're gonna make it," Cuddy realized.

"I don't know if they will," he admitted.

"And… you're actually _CONCERNED_ about them," Cuddy clarified.

At this, House smiled just a bit.

"You're not really angry that I paid the guy off to marry us, are you?" deflecting her question expertly as he always did.

Cuddy twisted her mouth into a wry smile.

"I should be…" she said, trailing off.

"But you're used to my brand of insanity by now," he finished for her.

"Let's just say that I'm choosing to interpret it as a romantic act," she stated.

At this, he leaned closer to her, tracing her face, the lovely line of her neck and the curves of her breasts peeking out of her gown, which had been tormenting him the entire night.

"Can you interpret any crazy test or procedure that I want to try on a patient as a romantic act from now on?" he asked.

"Not a chance," she replied with a sexy grin, loving how he was looking at her.

They leaned closer to each other and kissed, parting their lips, their tongues lightly teasing each others.

"So are you changing your name to Mrs. Dr. Lisa House?" he asked against her lips.

"Not a chance," she repeated.

"Good," he grinned.

Cuddy tilted her head back as House began to softly trail his lips down her chin to her neck, tasting the hollow at the base of her throat.

"Wilson's … gonna be sorry he missed this," Cuddy said in a breathy tone, her skin tingling where House's lips were touching her.

"We'll tell him when we get back," he reassured her against her collar bone.

He then wrapped his arms around her and pulled her onto his lap. As she wrapped her arms lightly about his neck, he nuzzled his face into her cleavage, burying himself in the exposed curves of her breasts that weren't covered by her dress.

"What do you say we skip the festive meal and go right to the consummation of our generic marriage vows?" he said against her soft supple skin.

"Works for me," she replied.

TBC…


	52. Chapter 51

**HI EVERYONE!**

**THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING AND FOR ALL YOUR WONDERFUL COMMENTS! I RESPONDED TO ALL OF THEM.**

**HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :D **

* * *

**CHAPTER 51: Please read and comment.**

Shortly after enjoying champagne with House and Cuddy after their wedding ceremony, Chase and Sophie were running down the Rue de Rosiers as fast as they could towards the Eiffel Tower where their cruise around the Seine was to embark.

"What time does the cruise take off?" Sophie called out as she ran in her bare feet down the street, holding her heels in one hand.

"Five minutes," Chase called back as he glanced at his watch.

Sophie narrowed her eyes, trying to judge how far away the Eiffel Tower was from their vantage point.

"_FUCK_!" Chase suddenly yelled, stumbling and falling onto the street as a sharp, piercing pain shot up from his left ankle through his shin.

Sophie turned to see Chase a few feet behind her in a heap in the middle of the sidewalk, wincing in pain, grabbing onto his ankle. She dashed back to him, ignoring the other pedestrians who didn't bother to move out of her way.

"What's wrong?!" she demanded nervously once she reached him, crouching down to him on the street.

Chase didn't answer her. His eyes were shut tightly as he hissed and gritted his teeth from the pain he was experiencing.

"Your _ankle_?!" she asked.

He nodded vigorously, still holding onto his ankle as it throbbed mercilessly.

She only paused for a second before hooking her arm around his back and under his armpit and helping him up off the street. He leaned heavily on her as they somehow made their way over to a nearby empty bench.

"Lemme see," Sophie told him after she helped him sit down.

After he propped up his leg on her lap, she winced herself when she saw that his ankle had already swelled at least a few inches.

"…It's a little swollen," she said.

Chase grunted in disgust and pain, wondering how much damage he had just done to his bad ankle and how much one misstep had just set back the LLLT treatment he received a few weeks ago.

"Looks like I'm paying Dr. Eng another visit when we get home," Chase joked half- heartedly, the pain shooting up his leg.

Sophie gave him a melancholy smile, gazing at him for a moment.

She then opened her purse and started rooting through it. Chase furrowed his brow, curious as to what she was looking for.

His eyes widened in shock when he saw her produce an unfinished bottle of Ultram with his name printed on the label and shook out two pills from it.

"Here. You need some water?" she asked, handing him the pills.

Chase merely stared at her, completely caught off guard that she was actually carrying his meds with her.

Meds that he hadn't used for over three weeks.

"… N-no," he managed to say, finally taking them from her.

As he swallowed the pills dry, Sophie noticed that they were sitting only a few feet from a storefront where people were lined up, buying take out food and drinks.

"Don't move. I'm going over there to see if they have some ice," she told him, gesturing towards the storefront as she carefully took his leg off her lap.

Chase nodded, still confused why Sophie was carrying his meds with her.

He watched her slip on her shoes and hurried the short distance to the storefront. It took her a few minutes to explain to the vendor that she needed some ice, but he finally seemed to understand her and handed her a large paper cup full of ice.

"_Merci_," Sophie said to the vendor as she quickly grabbed a bunch of paper napkins from the nearby napkin holder and headed back to Chase.

Once she sat down again, she pulled his leg back onto his lap, fashioned a makeshift ice- pack out of the paper towels and the ice she got from the vendor and placed it gingerly on his ankle.

"How does that feel?" she asked him.

"How long have you been carrying my meds in your purse?" he asked her still surprised.

At this, Sophie smiled a little.

"Since the day you stopped carrying them in your pocket," she told him.

"… I… haven't had them on me—"

"Since the day you started the LLLT Clinical trial."

He looked at her quizzically. But she merely smiled and shrugged.

"I figured just in case the pain came back," she said.

He stared at her for a moment, oddly moved by her simple gesture. She reached up and brushed the lock of hair that was always in his eyes.

"I'll always take care of you," she told him plainly.

Despite the pain he was feeling, he smiled back, leaned forward and gave her a soft kiss.

"I'm glad," he admitted.

He then looked at his watch, realizing that their dinner cruise around the Seine had probably already set sail, leaving them behind.

"I think we missed the boat," Chase said with disappointment. "And dinner."

Sophie gave him a lopsided smile, glancing back at the storefront, just noticing that the sign at the top read "_L'AS DU FALAFEL_."

"You like falafel?" she asked him, arching her eyebrow.

* * *

At around the same time, House kicked open the door to his and Cuddy's large room in the Georges V hotel, holding Cuddy in his arms.

He quickly took the few steps over to their sumptuous king sized bed and dumped her on top of it, flopping down next to her.

"Crap, that dress weighs a ton," he told her, catching his breath.

"You didn't have to carry me over the threshold," she said with a laugh.

"It's tradition," he said, shrugging off his suit jacket and snagging one of the chocolate mints that were placed on their pillow by the housekeeping staff.

Still grinning, Cuddy rolled over onto her side to face him, propping herself up on her elbow.

"You've always been a closet romantic," she pointed out.

House smirked, kicked his shoes off and opened up another chocolate mint.

"You're really not gonna change your name?" he asked her, holding the chocolate out for her.

"…You _WANT_ me to change my name?" she asked, giving him a coy smile as she took the chocolate out of his hand.

"It's tradition," he repeated as he watched her slip the chocolate onto her tongue and engulf it with her lips.

Cuddy kept the smile on her face as the chocolate dissolved in her mouth, knowing that his words were his way of telling her that he wanted the world to know that she was now his wife.

"How about I hyphenate?" she suggested.

"_Dr. Lisa House- Cuddy_?" he quipped.

"No, '_Cuddy- House_' you idiot," she retorted, giving him a playful shove.

As her hand made contact with his chest, he grabbed her wrist gently and smoothly pulled her down to lay on her back, nestling himself on top of her.

"You really gonna make everyone in the hospital call you '_Dr. Cuddy- House_?'"

"No… just you," she teased.

He laughed slightly and lowered his lips down to hers, capturing them in a languid kiss.

As he brushed his lips against hers, he rolled her slightly onto her side, reaching behind her body, his hands already searching for the zipper on the back of her dress.

Their lips still locked, he arched his eyebrow as his fingertips felt a hook and eye and several buttons that went down the line of the zipper.

"How am I supposed to get you out of this thing?" he demanded, breaking off their kiss while continuing to struggle with the various closures on her dress.

"Isn't that half the fun?" she asked, stifling a giggle.

"Not for me. I'm an old man," he replied.

She tsked. "Stop saying that," she chided him gently, reaching up to caress his cheek.

"It's true. I'm 50, I wear reading glasses and I remember where I was when Kennedy was shot," he replied.

"You were only four years old when Kennedy was shot," she grimaced.

He shrugged. "I still remember it."

She snorted and rolled him over onto his back, lying on top of him.

"You have a PSP, an iPod, a yo- yo, you play stickball with your cane and your red and grey tennis ball against the wall in your office, you still play pranks on your best friend, you think jokes about bodily functions are hilarious, and you have the emotional maturity of an eight year old," she stated in one breath.

"Trust me. I'm not as mature as an eight year old," he shot back.

"I think you keep saying you're old because you're deflecting your real feelings," she said in a serious voice as she began to loosen his tie around his neck.

"We've only been married for less than an hour and you're already nagging me?" he asked.

She shot him a pointed look, waiting for him to say something.

He rolled his eyes.

"Ok, what are my real feelings?" he deadpanned.

"You're intimidated by your brilliant… clever… sexy… and _MUCH YOUNGER_ wife," she said, a broad grin forming on her face.

"That's it, woman. It's on," he announced, rolling her quickly onto her back and hiking up her dress, disappearing underneath it, causing her to shriek aloud.

"How many layers you got on under here?" he asked her from underneath the billowy skirt and tulle crinolines of her dress.

She laughed out loud. "Get back up here!"

He did as she told him, pressing his now semi- erect cock against her, still wearing his slacks.

Cuddy kissed him again and raked her fingers through the back of his hair.

He took in the scent of her white lily perfume as his lips and tongue explored hers wantonly. She moaned in pleasure into his mouth.

He slowly moved his hands down the smooth decadent sillk fabric of her gold gown, caressing and cupping her breasts, her torso, her waist and then her hips. She hummed appreciatively at the feeling of his hands on her.

Making his way up the back of her dress again, he somehow managed to unclasp the hook and eye and undo the buttons. He then unzipped her dress, helping her out of it.

"Oh _god_!" he blurted out, his eyes nearly popping out of his head upon seeing what she had been hiding underneath.

She bit her lip sexily, striking a sexy pose as she rolled over onto her side once again.

All she was wearing was a silk gold garter around her thigh.

"Surprised that I went commando for our special day?" she asked him in a sultry tone.

He could feel the blood rushing to his cock as he traced the outside of her thigh with his fingers, his gaze lingering over her supple, naked delectable curves.

"This for me?" House asked, brushing his fingertips against the garter.

"It's all yours," Cuddy said, her eyes smoldering.

House slipped his fingers beneath the garter and shifted his position down on the bed.

He slowly spread her legs and kissed the inside of her thigh underneath the garter. She gasped at his touch.

He began to kiss his way up her thigh, brushing his lips against her labia and nuzzling the soft hair teasingly with his nose, her breath catching in her throat at the feel of him.

His kissed up her torso to her breasts, where he traced around her areola with the tip of his tongue, finally closing his lips around her nipple, making her breath hitch again.

"Say you're mine," House demanded softly against her breast.

"… I'm yours," Cuddy said haltingly.

"Good girl," House murmured.

Their lips met again as he possessively fondled her breasts. She pulled his loosened tie off his neck and began to undo the buttons of his shirt.

Once his shirt was off, they deepened their kiss. As their passion grew, she fumbled with the zipper on his slacks and pushed them and his boxers down off his hips. He kicked them off the rest of the way and pressed his body against hers.

"Tell me again…" he begged in a low moan, his erection throbbing against her.

"... I'm yours…" she breathed.

"You're my what?" he asked, his voice raw with need as he nudged her legs apart and slipped his cock inside her.

"… I'm you're wife," she whimpered, arching back on the bed as he filled her up.

House thrust into her deeply, over and over again, watching her face intently. He never took his eyes off her as sexy little cries escaped her lips with each time he pushed into her, winding her legs around his back.

His breathing became more intense with each slow deliberate thrust. He slipped his hand between their bodies, finding her moist, delicate nub.

Cuddy gasped in delight, feeling even more erotic as he rubbed her clit with his fingertips, adding friction and intensity where she craved it most.

"Make me cum, Lisa," House whispered huskily into her ear, feeling the pressure already start to build up between his legs.

Cuddy felt the walls of her moist folds clench tightly at his words.

"_OHH GREGG_!" Cuddy exclaimed into his shoulder, her orgasm overtaking her.

House let out a groan as he exploded inside her.

He collapsed on top of her, both of them breathing heavily. Cuddy ran her fingers through the back of his hair, a satisfied smile on her lips. House buried his face in her shoulder, still breathing heavily.

"You ok?" she asked as she caught her breath.

"Mmpf," was all he said, smiling against her shoulder.

* * *

A little while later, Chase and Sophie were still sitting on the bench on the popular pedestrian _Rue de Rosiers_, eating pita bread stuffed with falafel with hummus, tahini and hot sauce that Sophie had bought for them from the _L'as du Falafel_ stand where she had gotten an ice pack for Chase.

The swelling on his ankle had gone down considerably, and the Ultram that Sophie had given him were doing their job. Chase was almost feeling no pain.

"This is awesome," Chase said in between large bites of his falafel.

"Almost as good as Azuri on 51st street," she agreed with a nod as she chewed.

"Mmm," was all Chase said as he took a sip of homemade lemonade from the extra large Styrofoam cup he was holding.

"I'm so glad we missed the boat," she told him, reaching for his lemonade.

"I'm so glad I didn't pay for the tickets ahead of time," he replied, giving her the cup.

Sophie laughed. "C'mon, you're having fun," she coaxed as she took a sip from his straw.

"I am," he said. "I'm just a little bummed I didn't get to take you for the romantic dinner I planned."

Sophie put the lemonade back down on the bench and shrugged.

"Sometimes things don't go the way you plan them," she said simply.

He nodded with a sigh, glancing down at his ankle, hoping that what he just did to his ankle was going to be treatable.

But before he could think too much about it, Sophie touched his chin, making him meet her eyes.

"And this is probably the most romantic dinner I've ever had," she added sincerely.

"Really? You're a cheap date," he quipped.

"And you're complaining?" she said, without missing a beat.

With that, he took a big bite out of his falafel, chewed a few bites, and gave her a big, loud sloppy kiss, leaving a film of hot sauce on her chin and her lips.

She laughed out loud, tossing a stray hair out of her face with a nod of her head.

"Thanks a lot," she said dryly, looking around the bench to see if there were any clean napkins left.

"C'mere, you're a mess," he told her, wiping her face with a paper napkin that was near him.

She leaned her chin forward so Chase could wipe her face.

But as Chase began to wipe the hot sauce off her, Chase gazed at her thoughtfully.

"_You should know I like a girl who's not afraid to make a mess_," he said softly.

Sophie chuckled. "Do you know that's exactly what you said to me—"

"At Cheers Pub in Boston the week we first met," he interrupted her, finishing her thought.

Her smile faded to a stunned expression, truly shocked that he had remembered that moment between them back in October, when they had first met when she was still a med student in Boston, waiting tables at O' Sullivans.

She nodded, her heart fluttering in her chest at the memories of that week, when she had fallen in love with him from the moment she laid eyes on him.

And how he still managed to make her feel that way with just a simple look.

"Do you remember what you said after that?" he asked her.

"… I said... _'then you're gonna love me,'_" she replied.

Still holding the paper napkin, he wore a soft, gentle smile as he caressed her cheek with his thumb, drowning in her deep brown eyes.

"You were right," he told her.

TBC…


	53. Chapter 52

**HI EVERYONE!**

**WELL, I THINK WE'VE GOT ONLY THREE CHAPTERS LEFT UNTIL THE END. :(**

**BUT HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER.**

****TO SEE PICTURES OF CAMERON'S WEDDING GOWN, AND SOPHIE'S AND CUDDY'S DRESSES, CLICK ON OR PASTE THE LINKS LISTED IN MY PROFILE.****

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :D**

* * *

**CHAPTER 52: Please read and comment.**

**NEXT DAY: SUNDAY.**

It was a glorious warm day.

The outdoor enclosed Marble Courtyard of the Georges V Hotel was set up for Cameron's wedding ceremony.

Rows of white folding chairs were neatly arranged and the guests were already finding their seats. The Courtyard was elegantly adorned with lilies and white roses, adding a soft balance to the vibrant greenery and the Greco- Roman architecture of the surrounding outer walls of the hotel.

Dr. Sebastian Charles was all smiles as he stood almost impatiently, dressed in his Armani tuxedo at the altar with his best man, waiting for his bride to make her appearance.

Chase and Sophie were sitting in one of the rows of chairs waiting for the ceremony to start as well.

Sophie was quietly taking in her surroundings as Chase had his arm around the back of Sophie's chair and started to gently stroke the back of her arm with his thumb.

"That's nice," she said, smiling a bit as his touch.

His gaze lingered over how lovely she looked in her ivory chiffon dress she was wearing. The tea- length showed off her legs while the cross over V- neckline and ruffle detail on the shoulders straps accented her neck and cleavage. Her hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail, wisps framing her face.

"You're beautiful," he whispered against her ear.

She smiled a little more at his words, turning towards him.

She couldn't get over how gorgeous he looked in his light grey suit, a crisp white shirt and a straight deep purple tie. He chose not to shave this morning, knowing that Sophie absolutely loved how he looked with a day's growth of scruff on his face.

"_YOU'RE_ beautiful," she said sincerely, losing herself in his eyes.

Her heart skipped as he delicately brushed one of the wisps of hair out of her eyes and tucked it behind her ear.

"You know it's not fair to the bride that you look this beautiful," he added playfully.

She grinned, a little laugh escaping her at the line he used on her.

"Too much?" he asked with a lopsided smile.

"Not to me," she replied, still grinning.

He gave her a soft kiss on her lips.

"…You ok?" he asked with hesitation.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she assured him.

Chase nodded, keeping a thoughtful gaze on her.

Sophie seemed to handle the news about Cuddy's pregnancy well last night. And he was sure that his misstep and injury to his ankle as they were running to make their cruise had distracted her from the whole thing.

But now that they were attending Cameron's wedding, who was also pregnant, he wasn't sure if she was going to be fine in a few minutes.

She leaned forward and nuzzled her nose with his, knowing he doubted her answer.

"I had such a great birthday," she told him, trying to ease his mind.

He brushed her lips again, satisfied for the moment. "I'm glad."

"We're not here for more than a minute and already they're sucking each other's faces," an all- too familiar voice said from nearby.

Chase and Sophie broke apart their kiss and turned towards House, who was now sitting in the previously empty seat next to Sophie. House looked devastatingly handsome wearing a charcoal suit and a light pink shirt with no tie.

"Where's Cuddy?" Sophie asked.

"She had to pee. You know how pregnant women are," House replied.

Chase felt like strangling House for his insensitive remark.

But Sophie was undaunted.

"So did the little blue pills help you rise to the occasion last night?" she quipped with a saccharine sweet smile.

House smirked.

"Nice," he said appreciatively.

Chase couldn't help but laugh at her comeback. She gave him a tiny wink and turned her attention back to the front of the Courtyard.

Just then, Cuddy made her way over to them. Wearing a knee length iris colored satin and taffeta A- line dress with a deep V- neckline and a beaded empire waist that accented her curves, she sat down next to House, crossing her legs.

"Is he behaving?" Cuddy asked by way of greeting Chase and Sophie.

"No more than usual," Chase replied.

"So how was dinner on the Seine last night?" Cuddy asked Sophie, her voice slightly wistful.

"We missed the boat," Sophie said with a tiny smile and a shrug.

Cuddy furrowed her brow, wondering how they could have missed their cruise considering that they had left after her wedding ceremony with plenty of time to spare, but Sophie didn't elaborate.

She looked over at Chase for further explanation.

But he was too preoccupied with the fact that he had just received a text message on his phone.

"Excuse me," Chase said politely, giving Sophie a quick kiss on her cheek.

Chase got up from his seat and headed inside the hotel.

House watched him leave, remaining unusually quiet.

* * *

With a slight limp in his step, Chase headed to the Bridal Suite inside the Georges V hotel, not too far from the entrance to the Courtyard.

He knocked twice. "Cameron? It's Chase," he said from his side of the door.

"Come in," she called back.

"I got your text—" he began to say as he entered the room.

But his breath caught in his throat, stopping him in mid sentence when he saw her.

Cameron turned her head away from the full- length antique mirror she was looking in upon hearing Chase's voice.

She smiled in an almost melancholy fashion when she saw his stunned reaction at seeing her in her dress.

The blush silk full- length strapless satin ball bridal gown looked like it was made just for her. The drop waist alencon lace detail on the bodice elongated her slim figure, while the low open back and box pick up skirt added a feminine vintage look. Her long blonde hair was attractively swept off her neck and delicate drop diamond earrings adorned her ears.

She, just as Cuddy was last night, was absolutely glowing.

"Hi," she said softly.

Chase, still completely blown away by how gorgeous she was, struggled to find his voice.

"… Hi," he finally said.

She slowly walked over to him, her sad smile still on her face.

When she reached him, Chase suddenly remembered why he came into the bridal suite in the first place.

"I… got your text," he repeated dumbly, unable to take his eyes off her.

She nodded, drawing in a breath.

"I want you to give me away," she stated.

At first, Chase wasn't sure he had heard her correctly.

"Your… dad's in the front. Shouldn't he be the one—"

She shook her head adamantly.

"I want _YOU_ to do it," she insisted in a raspy voice.

"_Please_," she added.

Chase was still stunned as her beautiful green eyes pleading with him. He swallowed and finally nodded.

"All right," he said.

* * *

A few moments later, after the processional music began and Cameron's niece walked down the aisle, dropping white rose petals as she walked, the string trio transitioned into an arrangement of The Wedding March.

The audience, almost in unison, turned around and stood to face the back of the Courtyard to see the bride.

At the front, Sebastian stood up a little straighter in excitement, feeling butterflies in his stomach.

His entire face lit up when he saw Cameron.

From her position on the other end of the aisle, Cameron smiled happily when she saw her soon to be husband waiting for her. Her hand was placed on Chase's arm as they stood next to each other.

She squeezed Chase's bicep as they began to make their way down the aisle together. Chase tried to minimize his limp as much as he possibly could as he escorted her to Sebastian.

"She's absolutely beautiful," Cuddy murmured to House as Cameron passed them.

House didn't reply.

Because he wasn't even looking at Cameron.

He was looking at Sophie, who maintained a stoic expression and a straight posture as she watched Chase lead Cameron to Sebastian and kiss her on her cheek once they had reached the front of the Courtyard before handing her off to Sebastian and heading back to his seat.

* * *

A little while later, Cameron and Sebastian's wedding reception was in full swing.

The hardwood dance floor in one of the hotel ballrooms was filled as an eight piece jazz combo played an upbeat tune.

Cameron and Sebastian were completely enraptured in each other as they danced, smiling and laughing as he twirled her around, her gown flowing as he did so.

Nearby, Chase and Sophie were sitting at a table at the edge of the dance floor, watching them dance, not speaking to each other.

Chase couldn't tear his eyes away from Cameron.

Sophie exhaled and stood up from the table, fed up with being neglected.

"I'm going to the bar. You want anything?" she asked him.

Upon hearing her voice, Chase turned towards her.

"What, honey?" he asked, having no idea what she had actually said.

A curt laugh escaped her lips. She shook her head in disgust.

"… I just asked you if you wanted anything from the bar," she repeated evenly.

Chase, suddenly aware that he had been ignoring Sophie and had been staring at Cameron hypnotically for quite some time, he stood up from his seat.

"I'll go with you," he offered sweetly, touching her arm.

"Don't bother," she snapped, ripping her arm out of his reach and storming off out of the ballroom.

* * *

Not too far away, House and Cuddy were at another table, sharing a plate of hors d'ouvres, watching the tense scene unfold between Chase and Sophie.

"What do you think's going on?" Cuddy asked him.

House watched Sophie rip her arm away from Chase's touch before she left the ballroom, leaving Chase forlorn, standing at the table alone.

He raked his fingers through his hair and thrust his hands in his pockets, his jaw hardening.

House tilted his head curiously.

"My guess is that she got fed up at Chase's annoyingly longing looks at Cameron," House said.

Cuddy frowned and shook her head sadly.

"I'll go talk to her," she said as she got up from the table.

But House pulled her back down to the table by her wrist.

"I'll do it," House said.

* * *

As the band ended the current song they were playing, the guests on the dance floor clapped and Sebastian wrapped his arms around Cameron's waist, kissing her.

"Feel like taking a break, Dr. Mrs. Charles?" Sebastian murmured into Cameron's ear.

Cameron giggled, about to tell him 'yes.'

But out of the corner of her eye, she saw Sophie tear herself away from Chase's grasp and leave the room, never looking back at him.

Chase's entire face fell as he watched Sophie walk out of the ballroom, running his fingers through his hair and stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"Can you give me a minute?" she asked her husband sweetly.

Sebastian nodded. "Of course."

Cameron kissed him again, pausing before approaching Chase, who was now sitting back down at the table by himself.

"Hey," Cameron said carefully once she reached the table.

Chase turned his attention away from the back of the room from where Sophie exited, his glum expression disappearing upon seeing Cameron in front of him.

"Hey," he said brightly. "Taking a break?"

She nodded and sat down next to him.

"How do you feel?" he asked her affectionately.

"Tired, but other than that ok," she replied, gazing at him thoughtfully.

He nodded, still smiling at her.

"You're glowing," he told her.

She smiled back reluctantly.

"Feel like a dance?" she asked him, jutting her head in the direction of the dance floor.

Chase paused for a moment, thinking that if Sophie came back and saw him dancing with Cameron, she'd be even angrier at him than she was right now.

But how could he refuse a dance with the bride?

"Why not?" he said with a smile, taking her hand and leading her back onto the dance floor.

As the music changed to an instrumental version of "_Just the Way You Look Tonight_," Chase pulled Cameron into his arms, pressing his cheek against hers as they danced.

"I'm honored that you let me give you away," Chase said into her ear.

Cameron paused, closing her eyes and mustering up the courage to tell Chase what she was about to tell him.

"It was a test," Cameron admitted.

Chase backed up slightly, confused at her statement.

"I texted you to come to the Bridal Suite because I wanted to see if you still had feelings for me," she explained.

"And when I saw your reaction to how I looked in my dress... I knew that you did," she continued.

"... I don't understand," Chase said, shaking his head.

"I wanted you to give me away because you have to get over me once and for all," she told him.

"...I..." Chase stammered.

"I know that Sophie can't have children," Cameron said.

"And I also know that she was willing to undergo an invasive surgical procedure to correct it," she added.

Chase felt his throat tighten.

"How could you possibly know—" Chase began, completely stunned.

"Sophie is _MADLY_ in love with you," she interrupted him, her eyes boring into his.

"And she's willing to do whatever it takes to make you happy for the rest of your life," she continued.

Chase kept staring at her, having no idea how to respond.

"_Don't screw it up_," Cameron begged him somberly.

* * *

"He's limping again," House stated to Sophie.

Sophie was sitting with her legs crossed on a plush couch in the lobby of the Georges V Hotel. She looked up when she heard House's voice next to her.

She nodded. "Yes he is."

House sat down next to her on the couch. "What happened?"

"We were running to make the boat last night and he twisted his bad ankle," Sophie replied.

House paused, mulling that over.

"How many pills has he taken?" he finally asked.

Sophie chuckled, not surprised that he had figured out that Chase was back on his meds.

"Two last night and one this morning," Sophie told him.

House nodded, a tense silence developing between them.

"So did you have a breakdown yet?" he asked.

"I'm fine," Sophie said flatly.

"Great," House said, nodding.

"'Cause I figured by now you'd be jonesing for a script for some anti- depressants, especially since you're surrounded by pregnant women, your fiancée is still carrying a torch for Cameron and your brother is too screwed up to come to your own wedding," he added.

Sophie glanced at him, exhaled and looked away.

"I was on Zoloft a few years ago. I had a bad response to it," she mumbled.

"That's one anti- depressant. Name six others," House said.

"I'm not taking any meds, House," she stated quietly but firmly.

"Then you have to ask yourself if you're strong enough to deal with the fact that he'll never get over her," House told her flatly.

Sophie paused again, the realization of House's statement sinking in. She stared down at her lap.

"He's never gonna get over her," Sophie repeated sadly.

"Nope," House agreed. "He'll always have a place in his heart for her."

She nodded, pressing her lips together, fighting the tears that were pooling in her eyes.

"But it doesn't mean that he doesn't love you with the rest of his heart," House added.

"What if I don't want to share him?" she whispered in an attempt not to cry.

"Either you stay with him and accept his feelings for Cameron as part of who he is… or you end it now," he replied.

Sophie couldn't help but laugh a little at the irony.

"Either go All In or fold the hand," she said.

"… Ok, if you want to assign a metaphor… sure," House said with a shrug.

"There's only two times you go All In. If you got the nuts, or if you're bluffing," Sophie reminded him.

House nodded, saying nothing.

"'The nuts' means the best possible hand," she explained.

"I know what it means," he said in mild annoyance, causing her to smile a bit.

"So I guess you have to ask yourself if you've got the nuts," House said.

At this, Sophie looked up at House, a tiny smile forming on her face.

"Do you _LIKE_ me, House?" she asked.

House raised his eyebrow, caught off guard by her question.

"Sophie, please. I'm a married man," he joked in an attempt to deflect.

Her tiny smile broadened.

"You _DO_ like me, don't you?" she pressed.

"You _are_ kinda young for me. Although I was pursued by a hot seventeen year old a few years ago," he joked again.

Sophie's grin remained.

"True, she did have spores in her brain, but—" House added with a shrug.

"If you didn't give a crap about me, you wouldn't have said what you said last night and you wouldn't be sitting here giving me this pep talk right now," she interrupted.

House looked everywhere but in her direction.

"I said what I said because—" he began.

"And it has _NOTHING_ to do with the fact that I chart for you in the Clinic," she told him, still smiling.

He glanced at her briefly before suddenly becoming interested in the floor beneath them.

"You like me as a person… and… as a _friend_," Sophie declared.

She then placed her hand on his shoulder, causing him to finally look at her again, the faintest hint of a sheepish smile on his face.

She winked at him.

"Relax. I won't tell anyone," she assured him.

TBC…

****TO SEE PICTURES OF CAMERON'S WEDDING GOWN, AND SOPHIE'S AND CUDDY'S DRESSES, CLICK ON OR PASTE THE LINKS LISTED IN MY PROFILE.****


	54. Chapter 53

**HI EVERYONE!**

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**CHAPTER 53: Please read and comment.**

A short time later, Sophie was still sitting on the couch with House in the lobby of the Georges V hotel when Chase came out of the ballroom to find her.

When he saw her sitting with House, he felt a surge of anxiety.

Somehow, House and Sophie had managed to grow close in a short period of time. He couldn't deny that they complemented each other. And he was impressed that Sophie could actually deal with him.

But after she had stormed out of the ballroom moments ago, it unsettled him that they were sitting together.

Chase approached the couch in the lobby cautiously, dreading the conversation that would ensue.

House looked up to see Chase tentatively approaching them. He then looked back at Sophie, who visibly stiffened at his presence.

"Guess I'll go see if Lisa ate everything in sight," House said as he pushed himself off the couch and quickly excused himself from the situation.

Chase watched House leave and then slowly sat down on the couch next to her.

"Good to see he's finally calling her by her first name," Chase joked awkwardly.

She let out a small laugh as her eyes drifted away from him, a tense silence developing between them.

"… I'm glad you don't call me 'Chase,'" Chase said finally.

"Why's that?" Sophie asked quietly, still not meeting his eyes.

Chase shrugged. "Because everybody calls me 'Chase'… but you're the only one who calls me 'Robbie…'" he replied.

"… And I love that," he added sincerely.

Inside, Sophie had to admit that Chase's words made her feel good.

But she knew that it weren't enough to make her forget what had just transpired between them in the ballroom.

"Why did you walk her down the aisle?" she asked barely above a whisper, her gaze on the floor.

"… She asked me to," he replied almost meekly.

Sophie nodded, still refusing to look at him.

"Did you ever think about how I'd feel about that?" she asked him.

He didn't answer her, a wave of remorse rising in him.

Because the truth was, when Cameron had asked him to give her away, he hadn't given any thought to what Sophie's reaction might be.

All he could think about at that moment was Cameron.

And when Cameron had told him while they were dancing that he needed to get over her, it broke his heart.

And he absolutely hated himself for it.

He glanced at Sophie, her forlorn expression causing an even deeper ache inside him.

"I'm sorry," was all he could say.

Sophie finally looked at him.

"Are you also sorry about pining over her while she was dancing with her new husband?" she asked.

"… she asked me to give her away… because she says that I need to get over her," he said softly, barely recognizing his own voice.

She pressed her lips together and nodded, an empty, hollow feeling rising inside her.

"… Is she right?" she asked, hardly able to get the words out, but already knowing the answer.

He was almost too ashamed to answer her.

But he knew that he had no choice but to tell her the truth.

"… _yes_," he whispered.

Sophie remained as collected as she possibly could, biting the inside of her cheek in order to keep her composure. The tears that had collected earlier in her eyes while she was talking to House began to make their appearance again.

But she was too stubborn to let them flow.

"Baby, I love you so much—" Chase began in a pleading voice.

"House told me I have to make a choice," she interrupted him bluntly.

As soon as Chase heard her say '_House_,' he froze, his earlier fears being realized right in front of him.

"What did he say?" he asked her, not really wanting to know the answer.

Sophie took a breath through her nose and sat up a bit straighter.

"He said that I can either stay with you and accept your feelings for Cameron as part of who you are…"

"…Or I end it now."

At this, a wave of panic swept through Chase's entire being. His stomach felt like it was in a vise.

Her voice was hard and unemotional, almost unrecognizable.

"And he's right, because I don't know how much more I can take," she added, her tone wavering just a bit.

"I lied to you," she continued.

"I told you I was ok… but I'm not," she admitted shakily.

Cautiously, Chase took his hand in hers, caressing her skin as gently as he could.

"Sweetie, this was a very difficult weekend for you, and I knew it was going to be. I should have never accepted her wedding invitation—"

"Deciding not to come to the wedding wouldn't change your feelings about her," she said.

He continued to hold her hand, just noticing at that moment that she wouldn't curl her fingers around his.

But her deep brown eyes bore into him.

"Do you think I should just accept the fact that the man I love with all my heart doesn't love me with all of his?" she asked him slowly.

Her words were as penetrating as her gaze.

Because Chase knew all too well what she was feeling.

At that moment, he remembered all the times that Cameron had assured him that she was completely over House.

And how each time he heard it, it had sickened him, because he just didn't believe her.

"I want to get over her," he told her truthfully.

She frowned, almost feeling sorry for him.

"I know you do," she said.

"…But I'm not sure that's enough anymore," she admitted.

* * *

The flight from Paris to New Jersey was seven hours long.

And for seven hours, Chase and Sophie had barely spoken to each other.

Chase had tried to initiate conversation, asking her if she wanted to read, listen to music or maybe a pillow or a blanket to be more comfortable.

But she politely said 'no thank you' to everything he offered.

Most of the time, she just looked out the window, watching the sky get darker as they crossed the Atlantic.

Chase caressed her leg a few times, hoping she'd look at him.

But she didn't.

House and Cuddy were sitting in first class with them across the aisle. House had slept for most of the flight, while Cuddy read a romance novel she had purchased in the airport.

Cuddy could tell by Chase and Sophie's body language that something was wrong between them.

Even though there was only an inch of space between their bodies, it was as if they were miles away from each other.

But she knew that it would be wrong for her to intervene. So she kept to her book, avoiding the palpable tension around her.

For seven hours, Chase's mind was flooded with memories of his and Sophie's relationship. How they met in Boston, how they had hit it off right away, how he had felt so connected to each other only after a few days.

How their love had blossomed for each other so quickly.

And how many twists and turns that love had taken.

He wasn't a fool. He knew that there had been plenty of bad times between them. Their fights were bitter. They had even broken up twice.

But through it all, she had never stopped loving him.

But now, as she sat next to him on the plane, silently gazing out the window without looking in his direction, he honestly didn't know if that was true any longer.

* * *

Late that night, Chase and Sophie had returned home, exhausted from traveling.

Sophie had brought her own luggage in, refusing to let Chase help her.

Despite the fact that she had said that she didn't want him to put any pressure on his ankle, Chase took it as a bad sign that she wouldn't even let him carry her bag.

"I'm gonna take a shower and go to bed," she said quietly, leaving her suitcase in the hallway as she began to head up the stairs.

"I can run a bath for you," he offered.

She stopped on the stairs and paused before turning around.

Her face was devoid of any emotion.

"That's not necessary," she said politely before continuing up the stairs.

* * *

A few moments later, Sophie was standing underneath the spray of the shower, losing herself in the hot water and steam.

She closed her eyes and lolled her head back as the water drenched her neck and breasts, trying desperately to relax.

She felt nothing.

As she contemplated whether or not she should bother to wash her hair or just rinse it, the shower door opened behind her.

Completely startled, she jumped a bit, sharply turning around to see Chase entering the shower.

"What are you doing?" she asked, still shaken.

Without a word, his eyes sadder than she had ever seen them, he placed both hands on her cheeks.

Her lip quivered as he dragged his thumbs gently across her face, wiping away the smeared mascara that had streaked her skin in the water.

Closing the space between them, he brushed his soft, pliant lips against hers. His warm breath enveloped her as he pulled her against his body, deepening their kiss.

She succumbed to his embrace, to his touch, to him.

She wound her arms around his neck and her legs around his back as he picked her up off her feet, their lips never parting as he backed her up against the wall of the shower.

She whimpered desperately into his mouth as he guided his cock into her, the water from the showerhead soaking them.

Their bodies rose and fell with each deliberate, passionate thrust, their shallow breaths echoing against the shower walls.

She could feel herself getting closer and closer to the edge with each movement of Chase's hips, not an inch of space between their bodies.

But just as she reached the precipice, Chase cried out, burying his face in her neck, his muscular frame shuddering as he went over, cumming deep inside her.

He held her tight as they slowly were able to catch their breath, not moving at all.

Their bodies still together, neither of them refusing to let go, it was only then that she allowed the tears that she had been holding back all day to escape.

* * *

**SATURDAY, JULY 14**

**ONE WEEK LATER:**

It was nine PM, and Cuddy was absolutely beaming as she surveyed the scene around her.

Princeton Lanes Bowling Alley was packed with doctors, nurses, assorted Princeton Plainsboro hospital staff, the hospital's biggest benefactors and their families, all dressed in the bright red and blue bowling shirts that she had ordered for all the invited guests.

The back of each shirt Each proudly displayed the words: "**Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital's First Annual Bowl- A- Thon. All Proceeds to Benefit PPTH Pediatrics**," in bright yellow embroidered lettering.

Her charity event was running incredibly smoothly, as everyone was thoroughly enjoying themselves, bowling to the music being piped in throughout the place, and munching on the appetizers that were being doled out by the bowling alley staff to the participants.

Cuddy couldn't help but laugh out loud as she watched some of the wealthiest contributors to her hospital chow down on the potato skins, quesadillas and cocktail franks that were making the rounds.

"Told ya you made the right choice with the food," House said to her as he took his bowling ball off the automatic return.

Cuddy gave him a thousand watt smile.

"Yes you did," she agreed.

House gave her a sexy smile as he leaned forward and kissed her hard on her lips.

"Now watch this," he told her as he stepped confidently up to the line.

His limp decidedly less pronounced, he walked up the few steps to the edge of the lane and took his shot, which resulted in a 7-10 split.

"Ah crap," he stated.

"_TOO MUCH AXIS TILT!_" Cuddy called out above the din of the music.

House turned around with a huge smirk.

"You _like_ my axis tilt," he told her.

She nodded eagerly, not caring one bit about the onlookers raising their eyebrows as she strode up to her husband and planted a huge kiss on his mouth.

From his seat behind them, Wilson merely stared at the two of them, taking a swig of his beer, wondering if he liked them better when they were this happy or when they were at each other's throats.

* * *

While the rest of the guests were having fun, Chase was sitting at the bar alone, well into his fourth cheap domestic beer of the evening.

He was considerably more than tipsy, his body starting to sway a bit as he tried to focus on the scene around him.

He barely even noticed it when House came up to him and took the empty stool next to his.

"Having fun?" House asked.

Chase slowly turned his head towards House, blinking once.

"Shouldn't you be showing off your mad bowling skills to your new wife?" Chase drawled sarcastically, his accent much more pronounced in his inebriated state, his eyelids heavy and half closed.

"I heard that Sophie left you," House stated.

A curt laugh fell out of Chase's mouth.

"Subtle as ever," Chase replied in disgust.

"Where'd she go?" House asked.

"…She's in Manhattan with her parents," Chase muttered.

House nodded. "Is she coming back?" he asked.

Chase shook his head, the corners of his mouth turning down as he stared absentmindedly at some random space in front of him.

"I'm sorry," House said in a gruff, sincere tone.

At this, Chase turned back to face House again, having a sudden moment of clarity.

"She told me that you said that she had to make a choice whether to accept me for who I am or leave me," Chase stated.

House gazed back at him with a thoughtful, calm expression.

"So in a way, this is _YOUR_ fault," Chase added, the venom increasing in his voice.

"I didn't make you have feelings for Cameron," House said.

"You destroyed my relationship with Allison… and now you did it again with Sophie," he said, laughing in disgust again.

"_YOU_ destroyed your relationship with Cameron. _YOU_ slept with Cuddy at a medical conference, which you never would have done if Cameron had actually _LOVED_ you instead of settling for you because she couldn't have _ME_," House reminded him, refusing to take the blame for Chase's misfortune.

"You're back to calling her '_Cuddy_' now? That didn't last long," Chase snarked.

"And Sophie left you because you're _STILL_ pining over Cameron," House added pointedly.

"She left me because you _POISONED_ her against me," Chase declared menacingly.

With that, Chase placed his beer on the counter and thrust his hand into his jeans pocket, producing a bottle of Vicodin with his name printed on it.

House's eyes widened ever so slightly.

"Who the hell wrote you a script for that?" he asked.

"The internet is an _AMAZING_ invention," Chase drawled as he attempted to open the top of the bottle.

But before he could do so, House grabbed his hand, somehow managing to take the bottle out of his grasp.

"Didn't realize that you were planning on going into respiratory failure tonight," House said, pocketing the Vicodin.

"No worries. We're in a bowling alley full of doctors, remember?" Chase said with a smirk as he leaned back against the bar.

House quickly counted the pills in the bottle, noting that only six pills were missing from the thirty that were prescribed.

"Normally I wouldn't give a crap if you made an ass out of yourself, but considering that my wife will probably withhold sex from me if you do that tonight, I suggest that you go home and sleep it off," House told him in a low tone, only an inch away from his face.

"You don't think I can get more drugs?" Chase challenged him, completely ignoring what House had just told him.

"I think you're watched 'The Big Lebowski' way too many times," House replied.

Chase snorted, turning away from him.

"And If you'd bothered to take your head out of your ass, you would've realized that Sophie was the best thing that ever happened to you and you wouldn't have screwed things up," House added.

Chase then turned back to him, laughing a third time.

He then stood up and took a wild swing at House, but missed, his body almost spinning around entirely.

House grabbed Chase and pinned his arms down, preventing him from falling over, the two of them stumbling from the force of Chase's body.

"What's going on?" Wilson asked, who was suddenly at the side of both men, having witnessed the entire interaction between them from a few yards back.

"Chase asked me to dance, but he wanted to lead, and I wasn't having any of it," House said as he struggled to hold Chase up.

Wilson immediately assisted House, getting behind Chase and grabbing him under his armpits. But Chase felt like dead weight in their arms, his eyes now fully closed.

Not a moment later, Cuddy briskly approached them.

"Whoops, the fuzz," House said.

"Is he drunk?!" Cuddy demanded under her breath, trying not to call any more attention to them.

"No. He's just sleepy," House stated flatly.

"Get him out of here," Cuddy ordered them in a hushed tone.

"I'll take him home," Wilson offered.

* * *

Later that night, House and Cuddy were back home. House was relaxing on his and Cuddy's bed, having changed into a white t- shirt and pin- striped sleep pants, his legs stretched out in front of him and crossed at the ankle.

"How's our pretty boy?" House asked into his cell phone?

"He's fast asleep. I'm gonna stay here and make sure he's ok," Wilson said on the other end.

"Shouldn't the prettier Wilson be doing that?" House quipped.

Wilson sighed in exasperation. "The 'prettier Wilson' doesn't live here anymore, which you already know."

"Call me if something happens," House told him before hanging up.

"Is Chase ok?" Cuddy asked with concern from her position next to him as she rubbed lotion onto her elbows.

"He's getting his beauty sleep," House replied, placing his cell phone on the night- stand.

Cuddy tsked. "I can't believe he got drunk tonight."

House kept silent, deciding not to tell her about the fact that Chase was probably high _and_ drunk from the mixture of Vicodin and beer in his system.

"Great party," he said instead.

"Except for when Chase took a swing at you in a drunken stupor," Cuddy replied.

"Didn't seem to spoil anyone's fun," House said with a shrug.

Cuddy smiled a little, rolling onto her side to face him.

"I'm glad it wasn't you that Wilson had to escort out of there," she said.

House gave her a long, lingering glance down her body, his arousal piqued at how her already swelled and newly pregnant breasts were pouring out from her cotton camisole.

He bent down a little to kiss her, his tongue gently exploring hers. He cupped her breast delicately over her camisole, mindful that they might be tender.

"Wait, wait. I gotta pee," she said against his lips.

House snorted. "Why didn't you go _BEFORE_ I started feeling you up?"

"I didn't have to go then," she replied, grinning as she got out of the bed.

House chuckled, watching her ass in a matching pair of cotton panties as she slipped into the master bathroom and closed door behind her.

He then grabbed the remote and switched to _Cinemax On Demand_.

"When's the last time we watched porn together?" he called out to her from the bed as he scrolled through the adult choices on the screen.

"Never," she answered flatly from the bathroom.

"There's a first time for everything, you know," he stated.

Cuddy didn't answer.

"I know what you're thinking. But Cinemax is really geared towards women. It's more romance than porn," he said loudly enough for her to ear through the door.

"… with naked hot chicks and some lesbian action," he added under his breath.

Just then, Cuddy came out of the bathroom.

"I'm spotting," she said in a throaty tone.

House turned away from the TV to see Cuddy standing in the middle of the room, her face pale and stricken.

"Do you have any pain?" he asked as calmly as he could.

"No," she said, shaking her head.

"You're only at three weeks. It could be just implantation bleeding," he offered.

"I'm paging Sobol," Cuddy stated firmly, reaching for House's cell phone.

* * *

Around ten minutes later, Cuddy hung up the phone with Dr. Sobol, her OB/ Gyn.

House waited nervously for her to start talking as she placed the phone back on the dresser.

"He told me that if it's just spotting that it's probably just implantation bleeding—" she began.

"Like I said," he stated.

She nodded. "But he wants me to come in first thing in the morning to make sure."

House thought this over for a moment.

"Ok," he said simply.

Cuddy exhaled deeply, resting against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her protectively and kissed her forehead.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," he told her before she even said anything.

"Sometimes I really wish you weren't a doctor," she muttered.

"No you don't," he said.

As she snuggled deeper into his chest, he held her tighter, trying not to let his imagination and medical experience let him think the worst.

TBC…


	55. Chapter 54

**WELL, AS I SAID, THIS IS THE FINAL CHAPTER.**

**I CAN'T THANK YOU ALL ENOUGH FOR READING THIS STORY. **

**AS ALWAYS, IT HAS BEEN SUCH A PLEASURE TO WRITE FOR ALL OF YOU. YOUR WONDERFUL REVIEWS MEAN MORE TO ME THAN YOU CAN EVER KNOW.**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND ENJOY!! :D **

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**CHAPTER 54: Please read and comment.**

The next morning at 8 AM, House and Cuddy were in an exam room in Dr. Sobol's office. Cuddy had changed into a patient's gown and was lying on an exam table while Sobol performed a vaginal ultrasound on her.

House was sitting by her side, critically eyeing the monitor that displayed Cuddy's uterus, while Cuddy and Sobol did the same.

"Everything looks fine," Sobol said with a confident smile.

"Oh thank _god_!!" Cuddy exhaled in relief.

"So the spotting was just implantation bleeding," House clarified.

"Most likely," Sobol replied while he finished the test, removed his gloves and began to read Cuddy's chart.

Cuddy smiled happily at House, who squeezed her hand and gave her a little wink, refusing to show any of the overwhelming emotions he was feeling inside.

"Told ya," he said.

"Yeah, rub it in," she muttered with a grin as she sat up on the table.

"I'm putting you on limited bed rest for the duration of the pregnancy," Sobol announced to Cuddy.

At this, House and Cuddy turned to Sobol in unison, Cuddy's jaw slacking open as if she was moving in slow motion.

House merely arched his eyebrow in curiosity.

"… Don't you think that's a little extreme??" she asked.

"In typical cases of first trimester spotting, yes. But with your medical history—" he began.

"I CAN'T BE ON BED REST FOR THE NEXT THIRTY- SEVEN WEEKS!!" she exclaimed.

"It's actually thirty- _five_ weeks," he clarified. "Technically, you're already five weeks into the pregnancy because—"

"Your due date is calculated from your last period, which means that you're already two weeks into the pregnancy by the time you conceive," House finished for him, at which Sobol nodded in agreement.

"And it's _LIMITED_ bed rest," Sobol repeated.

"And what exactly does that mean?" Cuddy demanded in agitation, already knowing the answer.

"You can get up at certain times during the day, you can get up to go to the bathroom and you don't have to lay in bed. You can sit in a chair," Sobol explained.

"But under no circumstances can you go to work for the rest of the pregnancy," Sobol stated firmly.

Cuddy felt like she was hallucinating.

"Who's going to run the hospital?!" she shouted.

"Oh please. The hospital basically runs itself. You're not worried about the hospital," House told her.

"Yes I am! I have a ton of responsibilities—"

"You're worried that if you're not around to baby-sit me, that I'm going to run amok around this place like a mad scientist but with better hair," House interrupted.

Cuddy stared at House for a moment before letting out an exasperated sigh and rubbing her forehead, which was her way of telling him that he was absolutely right.

Sobol couldn't help but smile a little at the two of them.

"What about if I have to run errands or food shop?" she asked Sobol with a weary gaze.

"You'll be able to leave the house occasionally, but definitely not for the next three weeks. I want to see how your eight week ultrasound goes first," he replied.

"So I'm supposed to live on take- out for the next three weeks?" she demanded.

"No, it means that you'll need to ask _other_ people to help you," Sobol explained as if he was talking to a child.

"Have you met her?" House snarked.

Sobol pursed his lips together, fighting off a huge laugh that was bubbling up in his throat.

Cuddy's reputation around the hospital as someone who could do it all herself and did was well known.

But Cuddy didn't look happy at all.

"Greg… I don't know if I can do this—" she began.

"There's only two ways to look at this. Either you want this baby, or you _DON'T_ want this baby," House told her, his bright blue eyes intense as he met hers.

Cuddy stared right back at him.

"I want this baby," she declared emphatically.

"Then you're gonna have to follow doctor's orders. You're not coming anywhere _NEAR_ this place unless its for your prenatal appointments or to give birth for the next thirty- five weeks," he stated firmly.

Cuddy soft blue- grey eyes remained on him, her stare communicating to him that he had better do his part as well.

"I'll behave," he assured her, knowing exactly what her look meant.

Cuddy laughed curtly.

"You say that now," she said in disbelief.

"Well here's a news flash for you. I want this baby, too," he told her.

"I _PROMISE_ I'll behave," he repeated.

Cuddy drew in a breath, hoping to god that House would actually be able to live up to his words.

But it wasn't only him that she was worried out.

"I'll have to find someone competent to take over for me while I'm gone," she commented, not thrilled about handing over the hospital to anyone else.

A small smile crept across House's face.

"What?" Cuddy said, nervously.

House didn't answer her as he took out his cell phone and pressed the speed dial for one of his contacts, waiting until the person he was calling picked up on the other end.

"Be in Cuddy's office in ten minutes ," House said into the phone.

* * *

"You _CAN'T_ be serious," Wilson stated, dumbfounded, standing in the middle of Cuddys office.

"It's just temporary," Cuddy told him, facing him as she leaned against the front edge of her desk, having changed back into her street clothes after her exam.

"I have a practice! How am I supposed to run the hospital?!" he exclaimed.

"How hard can it be to assign parking spaces and run after me in heels to do my Clinic duty?" House snarked from his position on Cuddy's couch.

"I'm not wearing heels," Wilson declared, not bothering to look in House's direction.

"I'll delegate some of my responsibilities to other administrators so you won't be overwhelmed," Cuddy said.

Wilson paused, mulling everything over, taking his familiar stance and placing his hands on his hips.

"What about him?" Wilson asked, jutting his head in House's direction.

"He promised he'd behave," Cuddy assured him.

Wilson burst out laughing.

"You know words can hurt!" House mocked him.

"Oh shut up," Wilson muttered.

Cuddy kept a patient gaze on Wilson staying silent, waiting for him to speak again before she made her move.

"Isn't there anyone else—" he began.

"Sobol said that if I want a better chance of keeping this baby that I have to follow his orders," Cuddy interrupted him.

"And there's no one else I'd trust more than you to do my job," she added after a well- timed pause.

"_Please_, James," she pleaded.

Wilson stared at her for a moment longer. He then raked his fingers through the front of his hair in aggravation, assuming his superman stance once more.

"...All right," he mumbled.

House smiled almost unnoticeably.

"Thank you," she said sincerely.

"Do you own any low cut tops?" House asked Wilson.

Wilson finally turned around, glaring at House.

"Don't think I won't file a sexual harassment complaint against you," he said.

"What if I buy you dinner first?" House asked.

Wilson glanced at his hip as his pager went off.

"I'll see you later, and buying me a meal with my money in the cafeteria doesn't count," Wilson said before leaving Cuddy's office.

House watched Wilson leave with an amused expression on his face before turning back to Cuddy.

"Using his first name was a nice touch, by the way," House remarked.

"Yeah, I thought so, too," Cuddy replied with a huge grin.

* * *

**FOUR WEEKS LATER, AUGUST 14**

**MANHATTAN:**

Sophie was talking on her cell phone, sitting in the packed waiting room of her doctor's office at the Mount Sinai medical center, surrounded by other waiting patients who were coughing and sneezing loudly.

"So how's it going, boss?" Sophie joked into the phone.

"Don't call me that," Wilson muttered on the other end in reply.

"How 'bout '_El Jefe_?' Is that better?" she teased.

"Yuk yuk," he replied.

"Are you still working late every night?" she asked.

He exhaled deeply. "Yep," he said flatly.

"Is House behaving himself at least?"

"So far. But I'm expecting the apocalypse any minute."

"How's Cuddy doing?" she asked. "I feel bad that I haven't called her."

"She's keeping busy by emailing me at least thirty times a day reminding me what I shouldn't let House do," Wilson told her.

"What's the over- under on when she goes insane from being stuck at home?" Sophie quipped.

Wilson chuckled. "Don't know. Chase didn't start a pool yet."

Sophie bristled immediately at the sound of his name, an uncomfortable sensation rising in her chest.

"…I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that," Wilson apologized, mentally kicking himself for mentioning Chase to her.

By now, it had been five weeks since Sophie had left Chase and had moved back in with her parents in Manhattan.

She hadn't called Chase once, and he had never called her.

She knew that Wilson saw Chase almost every day, but she had never asked her brother about him, and he didn't dare bring him up in conversation. Wilson had reconciled with Sophie after she left Princeton and Chase, and he didn't want to screw that up.

"…How's he doing?" Sophie asked reluctantly.

"Well, he got drunk at Cuddy's fundraiser…" Wilson began hesitantly.

"… And… he took some Vicodin," he mumbled.

"… _What_?" was all she could say.

"He only took six pills. He ordered them online and made the mistake of flaunting his stash in front of House at the bowling event," Wilson explained.

Sophie had to admit to herself that she was shocked. She remembered that in Paris he needed Ultram because he had twisted his bad ankle a bit.

But she never expected him to take Vicodin again.

"House also took Chase's computer, searched his home and his locker for any more drugs and is having Foreman and Thirteen keep tabs on him," Wilson added.

"…And it's working because Chase has thrown himself completely into his job," he finished.

"…He must've be in real pain to go for the Vicodin," Sophie mused, unable to keep the sadness out of her voice.

"Why don't you give him a call?" Wilson suggested.

"I'm _not_ calling him," Sophie stated flatly.

"It's obvious that you're worried about him," Wilson pointed.

"…And that you still love him," he added after a concerted pause.

She reached up as a reflex and fiddled with the Tiffany Key charm that Chase had bought her as a present when she had first moved in with him. She had contemplated taking it off plenty of times in the last month.

But she just couldn't bring herself to do it.

"I'll always love him," she muttered miserably under her breath.

Wilson smiled sympathetically on the other end. Even thought she hadn't verbalized to him how difficult her decision was to leave him, he knew it couldn't have been easy.

And even though he'd never admit it to her, part of him felt she had made a mistake by leaving him.

"It's my fault that he went back to the pills," she said with deep regret.

"You did what you thought was right," he replied.

She frowned, slightly put off by her brother's words, his left- handed comment not making her feel any better.

"How much longer until they call your name?" he asked.

Sophie glanced around the waiting room. "Dunno. There's a ton of people in here."

"So call Chase while you're waiting," he suggested.

Sophie paused, still playing with the key charm around her neck.

"…I'll think about it," she acquiesced.

"Let me know what the doctor says," he told her, knowing that he wasn't going to get anymore out of her than that.

"I will, Chief," she snarked.

"Bye, So," he said in a sing- song voice, laughing a bit.

"Bye, bro," she replied, imitating his mocking tone before hanging up.

A tiny smile still on her face, she stared at her cell phone in turmoil as she decided what to do.

* * *

Back in Princeton, Chase was in the cafeteria sitting by himself, immersed in a medical journal when his cell rang.

"This is Chase," Chase stated flatly into the phone.

He was met with silence on the other end.

"_Hello_??" Chase said, becoming impatient and annoyed.

"… Hi," Sophie finally said.

Chase's heart lurched with emotion when he heard her voice.

"H- hi!" Chase managed to say, shocked and somewhat hopeful.

"…How are you?" Sophie asked.

"I… I'm ok," he stammered, still completely stunned that she had called.

"… Heard you made the scene at Cuddy's fundraiser thingy," Sophie commented.

Chase laughed. "If you mean I made '_a_' scene, then yes," he replied.

Sophie chuckled a bit, hating herself for doing so.

But Chase was all smiles.

"How are you?" he asked.

"Not so great. I've been sick lately," she admitted.

"What's wrong?" he asked her, concerned.

"I don't know. I've been really tired and achy… and my stomach hasn't been feeling right, either."

"Do you have any fever?"

"No, but this waiting room is packed. Something must be going around," she replied.

"Well hopefully you'll be better before the fall term starts," he said in an optimistic tone.

"_DAMN YOU, JIMMY_," she thought in silence, knowing that Wilson now had access to the hospital's mainframe as acting Dean.

Which meant that he must have shown Chase that she had registered for the new term for her fourth year at Princeton Plainsboro.

"I'm glad you didn't transfer," he said sincerely.

"Yeah, I'm gonna finish at Princeton. Didn't want to lose any more credits," she said, trying to sound as casual as possible.

"… Maybe… we could get together when you come back?" he asked, his tone still optimistic.

At first she said nothing, the angst churning inside her.

"I heard you took some Vicodin a while back," she finally said.

This time it was Chase's turn to be silent. She waited patiently on the other end for a response to her statement.

"I'm not on it anymore. I went back to the Ultram," he said.

"What happened to the Clinical trial?" she asked lightly.

Chase drew in a breath, letting it out slowly and evenly, remembering that the only reason he had participated in the Clinical trial in the first place was because she agreed to come back to him the second time they had broken up.

"Didn't really see the point in going back," he replied.

An irritated laugh fell out of Sophie's mouth at Chase's dig.

She was about to tell him that he was an idiot for discontinuing his LLLT treatment regardless of what had happened between them.

"I miss you," he blurted out, interrupting her train of thought.

A conflicted ache spread through her at the sound of his words. She couldn't deny that she missed him terribly. There wasn't a day that went by in the last four weeks that she doubted her decision to leave him.

But every time she did, the memories of Cameron's wedding came flooding back and how Chase had admitted that he still couldn't get over her.

"Sophie Wilson?" one of the nurse's in her doctor's practice called out, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"I'm sorry, Rob. I've gotta go. They just called my name," Sophie said into the phone as she gathered her belongings and got up off her chair.

Chase stiffened at what she had called him, but quickly brushed it away.

"Will you call me later and tell me what the doctor said?" he asked, almost pleadingly.

"…Sure," she replied.

* * *

Around an hour later, Sophie was still sitting on the exam table wearing a patient's gown with a look of utter shock and confusion on her face.

"… That's… _impossible_," she stammered.

"Apparently not," her internist, Dr. Burke, a woman in her late forties replied.

"You know that—" Sophie began.

"Yes. Which is why I did the test twice," Burke interrupted.

Sophie laughed. "Well you must have mixed up my test results with someone else's," she stated.

Dr. Burke smiled slightly.

"There is another way to confirm…" she offered.

* * *

A few moments later, Sophie was lying down on an exam table in another room, staring in complete awe at a hi- definition monitor while Dr. Burke gently probed her lower abdomen with an ultrasound transducer.

"Pretty sure I didn't mix up your _UTERUS_ with someone else's," Burke quipped, a smile tugging at her lips.

"…_Oh my god_…" Sophie whispered, her eyes transfixed on the screen.

"Congratulations, Sophie," Dr. Burke told her, holding the transducer steady so both of them could see the distinctive image on the monitor of a fetus, its tiny heart beating exactly as it should be.

"You're pregnant."

* * *

**I HOPE YOU ALL DECIDE TO STAY TUNED FOR THE SEQUEL TO "ALL IN," ENTITLED: **

**"WHATEVER IT TAKES."**

**I HOPE TO HAVE THE FIRST CHAPTER UP BY THE BEGINNING OF NEXT WEEK.**

**(YOU DIDN'T THINK I WAS ACTUALLY GOING TO LEAVE IT THERE, DID YOU?) ;)**

**PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS ON THIS LAST CHAPTER AND IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN A SEQUEL.**

**-luv**


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